A star juvenile sprinter, Pago Pago won the delayed and big wet Golden Slipper of 1963

The PAGO PAGO story began in 1960 when his dam, POMPILIA, foaled a bay colt sired by 27-time winner MATRICE. He turned up at a public yearling auction in Adelaide and sold to Bert Just and his son Ernest for 2900 guineas. Tom Jenner was selected to educate the colt.

The champion jockey Billy Pyers was a major player in Pago Pago’s success, riding him in all 10 starts. Their only defeat came at his debut when third in the Fulham Park Plate at Victoria Park. The colt was kept at his home base in Adelaide for his next six starts and was a huge favourite with local racegoers. Jenner and Pyers knew Pago Pago was something well above the ordinary and mapped out a Melbourne campaign prior to heading to the Golden Slipper.

He won two of Melbourne’s top juvenile races – the Merson Cooper Stakes and the VRC Sires Produce Stakes – and was then Sydney-bound for the big one. South Australia’s superb two-year-old Pago Pago not only landed the slowest and most arduous Golden Slipper Stakes, he remains the lone midweek winner of the race, and the first late entry to win.

The Justs incurred a late entry fee of £1000 to participate in the Slipper, demonstrating their unwavering commitment despite the local popularity of the Sydney colt TIME AND TIDE. Pago Pago arrived at the Rosehill stables of former Sydney Turf Club chairman Tom Kennedy and acclimatised exceptionally well. The colt had a dream temperament which made him easy to handle and less fractous then some of his fellow juveniles. Nevertheless, the weather conditions became unfavourable in the week leading up to the Saturday, resulting in a change of plans. The traditional Rosehill Saturday fixture had been washed out and STC officials had no option but to move their feature meeting to the following Wednesday, with the track still severely rain affected.

A crowd of just under 20,000 headed to Rosehill. Pago Pago was 2-1 favourite with Time and Tide slightly longer at 9-4. Time And Tide hit the lead early, but was unsuited by the heavy track conditions. Pago Pago made the home turn awkwardly and went even wider, but Pyers knew what he was doing and in a couple of bounds put the Slipper beyond doubt. At the post he held a 1¼-length margin over ROSIE SUN, with Melbourne filly RIPA third. That was the last time PAGO PAGO raced.

He was bought by the famed American breeder Arthur Hancock for $90,000 and shipped to the US for a racing and breeding career. Nowadays, Pago Pago would be worth close to $40 million. Pago Pago went into training but had a dislike for dirt tracks and was retired. Hancock’s Claiborne Farm Stud in Kentucky was his home for 14 years, and his strike rate was a sensational 80% winners to starters.

Merson Cooper Stakes

SAJC Breeders Stakes

VRC Sires Produce Stakes

1963 Golden Slipper