Varenne, Legendary Italian Trotting Horse 'Il Capitano,' Dies at 31 in Eboli

Varenne, the Italian trotting champion widely regarded as the greatest harness racer of all time, died at age 31 on Tuesday, August 18, 2026, after a sudden heart attack overnight at the LJ breeding farm in Eboli, in the province of Salerno. The horse’s official Instagram account announced the death in the morning, and a veterinarian confirmed a fulminant cardiac arrest as the cause.

Known to fans as Il Capitano — “The Captain” — Varenne raced from 1998 to 2002, winning 62 of 73 career starts and earning more than €6 million, a record for trotting at the time of his retirement. His death drew immediate coverage across Italian sports media and tributes from the harness-racing world.

Editor’s note: This article draws on statements from Varenne’s official social channels, reporting from La Repubblica, SportMediaset, and career records from the Harness Racing Museum and Italian equestrian archives, August 18, 2026.

How the death was announced

On the horse’s official Instagram page, owners posted in Italian on August 18:

“With immense pain, we share the news of Capitano’s passing. Varenne died during the night and the veterinarian confirmed that the cause was a sudden heart attack. We are devastated by the news we received this morning and want to remember him together with all his fans, as he flew toward his victories. Today, Varenne’s wings have carried him elsewhere. Run free forever and remain forever our Capitano. May the earth bless you. With much love. Reach Enzo up there.”

The reference to Enzo points to Vincenzo “Enzo” Giordano, the Neapolitan stockbroker who owned Varenne for most of his racing career and died in 2025. The post also invoked Giampaolo Minnucci, the driver who partnered with Varenne through nearly every major victory.

Italian outlets reported that staff at the Eboli farm discovered Varenne had died between Monday night and Tuesday morning, August 17–18.

A record that defined modern trotting

Born on May 19, 1995, Varenne S. was bred in Italy and trained primarily by Jori Turja, with Giampaolo Minnucci in the sulky for the bulk of his career. His competitive arc was short but historically dominant: 73 starts, 62 wins, 6 seconds, and 2 thirds.

Milestone	Detail
Active years	1998–2002
Career earnings	~US$5.9 million / €6+ million at retirement
Countries won in	7 countries across Europe and North America
Signature 2001 season	Prix d’Amérique, Gran Premio della Lotteria, Elitloppet, Breeders Crown Open Trot

Among his landmark wins:

• Prix d’Amérique (2001) — Paris; first non-French winner since 1959
• Breeders Crown Open Trot (2001) — Meadowlands, New Jersey; first European winner; world-record mile in 1:51.1
• Elitloppet (2001, 2002) — Sweden’s premier trotting event
• Gran Premio della Lotteria (2000, 2001) — Italy’s richest trotting prize
• World speed record — 1:09.3 on 1,000-metre tracks at Mikkeli, Finland, in July 2002

Varenne became the first horse to earn Horse of the Year honors in Italy, France, and the United States in overlapping seasons. He is the only trotter known to have won the Prix d’Amérique, Gran Premio della Lotteria, and Elitloppet in consecutive years. In 2010, he was inducted into the Harness Racing Museum & Hall of Fame in Goshen, New York — a distinction usually reserved for American horses.

His career bookended by disqualifications at his first and last starts became part of the lore: imperfect beginnings and endings framing a middle stretch of near-perfection that Italian media still describe as unmatched.

Retirement and life in Eboli

Varenne retired from racing after the 2002 International Trot in Toronto and spent decades as a breeding stallion and public ambassador for Italian trotting. After years at facilities including Villanterio in Pavia province, he moved in 2025 to the LJ farm in Eboli, owned by Dario De Angelis.

Italian outlets had reported that Giordano chose Eboli for Varenne’s later life because of the farm’s long trotting pedigree — the De Angelis family had bred harness horses since 1937 — and spacious paddocks suited to a champion accustomed to wide turnout. Daniela Zilli, who had cared for Varenne for years, accompanied him to ease the transition.

At Eboli, Varenne lived in retirement while continuing limited stud duties. Local coverage in 2025 described him adapting well to the Salerno countryside, surrounded by other horses in a separate but social enclosure. He had been expected to mark his 30th birthday at the farm in May 2025; he was 31 at death.

Reaction across Italian sport

News of Varenne’s death spread quickly on August 18 through national outlets including La Repubblica and SportMediaset, which headlined him as the strongest trotting horse in history — il cavallo trottatore più forte di tutti i tempi.

Harness-racing communities in Italy, France, Sweden, and the United States — countries where Varenne raced — began sharing archival footage of his Prix d’Amérique and Breeders Crown victories. Fans reposted the Instagram farewell and images of Minnucci driving the chestnut champion through packed grandstands.

Minnucci had spoken publicly in recent years about the bond between Giordano, Varenne, and the team that carried Italian trotting to global prominence in the early 2000s. With both Giordano and Varenne now gone within roughly a year, Italian media framed August 18 as the closing of a defining era in the country’s equestrian history.

Legacy beyond the track

As a stallion, Varenne sired offspring that continued winning on European and North American circuits — extending his genetic influence more than two decades after his last race. His official website and social presence kept his story accessible to younger fans who never saw him compete live.

For Italy, where trotting draws passionate regional followings especially in the south, Varenne remained a cultural figure as much as a sports record-holder: a Naples-linked owner, a driver synonymous with one horse, and a champion whose nickname — Il Capitano — echoed in headlines on the day of his death.

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Discussion

Varenne’s career was brief on the calendar but permanent in the record books — and his final years in Campania tied a global champion to a single farm in Salerno.

1. If you followed trotting in the late 1990s and early 2000s, which Varenne race or moment defined him for you?

Was it the Prix d’Amérique, the Breeders Crown world record, or a smaller Italian meeting where he first caught your attention?

2. With both Enzo Giordano and Varenne gone within a year, how should Italian harness racing preserve that era for fans who never saw them race?

Museum exhibits, breeding lines, and archival film all play a part — which matters most where you follow the sport?

Share the memory, clip, or story that comes to mind when you hear the name Varenne.