Longwood Thoroughbred Farm was purchased in 2018 by Michael and Siobhan Christian along with Michael’s brother Brad and his wife Pauline.
It was the logical next step for Michael and Siobhan after establishing a highly successful breeding operation at their now former thoroughbred property in Woodstock. Over ten years with a small band of broodmares they produced stakes winners, Fuhryk, Of The Brave, Eloping, Hallowell Belle, Fuddle Dee Duddle and Unpretentious. They also bred 4 time stakes runner up Jesse’s Girl.
Michael first became interested in the thoroughbred industry in the early 1990’s, after taking a small share in a syndicate with friends. There was only limited success but a passion developed which was to grow quickly. Amongst the early highlights was a horse called Danish, trained by the Freedman Brothers, which won the Listed 2yo race on Melbourne Cup day in 1997. This served to fuel the passion.
In 1998, Michael formed a close association with trainer, Gai Waterhouse. The first horse he part owned, Roguish, placed as a 2yo in the Listed Breeders Plate. The second horse owned with Gai was Phoenix Park, who won his first two starts brilliantly and started favourite for the 2000 Magic Millions 2YO Classic. He ran fourth in the Group 1 Golden Slipper and won multiple stakes races including the Group 1 TJ Smith Stakes, the first time Gai won the race named in honour of her father. Gai trained other winners for Michael including Alibarber, Admiral Robinson, Easy Style and Backstreet Boy.
There were other successes along the way including part owning Slavonic, trained by Mick Price, which won the 1999 Group 1 Railway Stakes and some near misses including Roedean, also trained by Mick, who first past the post in the 2003 Group 1 Blue Diamond Stakes but was subsequently disqualified. Michael also enjoyed success with friend, neighbour and accomplished trainer Peter Morgan who trained stakes winners Oasis Bloom, Amah Rock and Eloping.
In 2003, Michael completed a Diploma in Horse Breeding at the NMIT which gave him an incredible insight into the practicalities of the thoroughbred industry and in 2007 together with Siobhan purchased a property in Woodstock to commence the breeding dream. The initial broodmare band consisted of Alisa Free, dam of Unpretentious, Bella Inez, dam of Hallowell Belle and Fuddle Dee Duddle and Runaway Jesse, dam of Jesse’s Girl, Eloping and Of The Brave. The broodmare band grew from there and included Fuhrnatic the dam of Fuhryk.
In recent years Michael’s brother Brad has become intimately involved investing in broodmares and sharing in excitement of the new property, Longwood Thoroughbred Farm.
