by Karsten Bønsdorf, USTA Newsroom Senior Correspondent

Norwegian trotter Lionel, driven by Ôrjan Kihlström, was an upset winner of the prestigious Grand Prix de Paris at Vincennes on Sunday afternoon (Feb. 28). Though Lionel was parked out most of the trip, he fought bravely to wear down the heavy favorite Bold Eagle, driven by Franck Nivard.

Bold Eagle, who was 1-5 in the betting, enjoyed a good trip in the shadow of Lionel and as Nivard made his move around the last corner everybody thought the favorite was going to win.

Gerard Forni photo

Lionel won the Prix de Paris, followed by Bold Eagle.

Bold Eagle got the better of long leading Bird Parker, driven by Jean Philippe Monclin, but Kihlström managed to find an extra gear with Lionel, who went around Bold Eagle to win by three-quarters of a length. Lionel and Bold Eagle were both timed in 2:00.2 (mile rate). The distance was approximately 2-1/2 miles.

Lionel, who is trained by Fabrice Souloy, has developed into a top trotter since he was sent to France. Souloy raced him for the first time in January 2015 and including the win today Lionel has earned $715,000 since then.

The chestnut trotter is sired by the French stallion Look de Star, a son of Coktail Jet, and is the only foal from the Swedish mare Aurora Sign, she by Smok’n Lantern.

It would have been a rich payday for Bold Eagle, who was looking at a bonus of 330,000 Euro plus the winner’s purse of $200,000 if he had won the Prix de Paris. He had to settle for $110,000, which was the purse for second.

Bold Eagle will not race again before August. He will now do stud duties and his book has long been closed.

To view a video of the race, with an English call from Mike Bozich, click here.