Cover image courtesy of Nicole Troost
Being born into racing doesn’t guarantee success in the industry, but it certainly helps. In fact, Sam Bergerson, son of Awapuni-based trainer Roydon Bergerson, was almost persuaded to stay away from racing altogether.
“My parents didn’t really want me to go down the thoroughbred racing industry road,” Bergerson told TTR AusNZ. Although he attended the races often as a teenager with his father, his parents instead steered him towards an accounting cadetship after he displayed an aptitude for it at school.
Bergerson attended university and worked at an accounting firm in Palmerston North, balancing 30 hours of work a week with his studies on his way to an accounting degree.
“I got to the end of it and thought, I don’t know if I enjoy this,” Bergerson recalled, “so I decided to go travelling.”
From the rugby pitch to Ballydoyle
Finding himself playing rugby near Cork, in Ireland, and not willing to go home just yet, it didn’t take long for the horse world to come knocking for Bergerson. Family connections landed him a job at Ballydoyle, under the eye of Coolmore’s esteemed trainer Aidan O’Brien.
“I moved up to Tipperary and then worked there for just shy of a year, until my visa ran out,” said Bergerson. “I loved it, I would have stayed there if I could!
“It’s a fantastic place. I realised soon after that I wanted to work with horses.”
Returning home to work for his father again, Bergerson came across the Sunline Trust International Scholarship, New Zealand’s premiere educational experience for young industry members.
“It looked like a fantastic opportunity to get more experience on the breeding side of the industry,” Bergerson said. “I was lucky enough to get that.”
The scholarship took him back to the Northern Hemisphere for 30 weeks, where he spent time at Shadwell Stud in England and Coolmore Stud in Ireland, with the last third of his trip spent at WinStar Farm in Kentucky.
“That was another fantastic experience that I’m very grateful for,” he continued. “From that, I knew that I was more passionate about the racing side of things.”
“From that (Sunline Trust International Scholarship), I knew that I was more passionate about the racing side of things.” - Sam Bergerson
Opportunities aplenty
Bergerson would not have to wait long for his next great opportunity to follow his passion. At the next New Zealand Bloodstock National Yearling Sales, he was approached by Jamie Richards, then the head trainer for Te Akau Racing.
“He said, ‘There’s a fantastic opportunity coming up at Te Akau Racing’,” recalled Bergerson, who was offered an assistant foreman role under Nicole Shailer, then the senior foreman of Te Akau’s Middle Barn. “He said, ‘Look, there’s Melody Belle and Avantage and Probabeel there now, it would be a great experience’. I jumped at the opportunity.”
Jamie Richards | Image courtesy of the Hong Kong Jockey Club
A year of hard work caring for Te Akau’s elite race mares earned Bergerson the respect of the Te Akau team, and Richards started to offer him more responsibility.
“One day he said, ‘I’d love someone to help me and take a bit of pressure off of me’,” Bergerson said. “‘I’ll train you to be my assistant trainer’.
“I sort of juggled it, so I was still helping Nicole at Middle Barn. I would do my afternoon stables, then I would go meet Jamie in the office and we would crack away at the boards until God knows what hour some days - but I loved it!
“It was a lot of work, but I am so grateful to Jamie for taking me under his wing. He taught me a lot - doing work lists with him, helping with owners, and trying to take a bit of pressure off of him.”
“I am so grateful to Jamie (Richards) for taking me under his wing. He taught me a lot...” - Sam Bergerson
When COVID struck, the New Zealand racing industry completely shut down and a newly minted assistant trainer Bergerson accompanied the team’s horses back to Te Akau Stud. He lived with David Ellis CNZM and Karyn Fenton-Ellis MNZM, along with racing manager Reece Trumper, helping to care for the horses and the 4000-acre property for the duration of the industry’s lockdown.
“Another experience during my Te Akau time that I’m very grateful for,” Bergerson said. “David (Ellis) was a fantastic host and we had a lot of fun in a time where it wasn’t much fun.”
'Partnership material'
In December of 2021, Richards was granted a training licence by the Hong Kong Jockey Club, and would leave the Te Akau team at the end of the 21/22 racing season. Formerly based in Singapore where he ran the Kranji arm of Te Akau Racing, Mark Walker returned to take the helm in the operation’s homeland.
“David said to me, ‘Eventually we think you could be partnership material’,” Bergerson related. He was to support Walker for the first year as his assistant trainer, drawing on his hands-on knowledge of the Te Akau horses to help Walker settle in, before stepping up to train beside him.
Mark Walker and Same Bergerson | Image courtesy of Te Akau Racing
Walker and the team tasted top-level success almost immediately; their first meeting yielding Te Akau homebred Maven Belle’s (NZ) (Burgundy {NZ}) victory in the G1 Manawatu Sires’ Produce S. in April 2022. Maven Belle would add the G3 Almanzor Trophy to her record the following January and retired with six wins from 12 starts. She sold in a Gavelhouse Plus online auction earlier this year for $902,500 to Yulong Investments trading under the name Downtown.
“He’s quite different from Jamie in personality, but they have a lot of similarities, with Jamie coming up through the Te Akau system as well,” said Bergerson. “It’s been great to learn from two world class trainers, I’ve been very lucky in that regard. Both were very good to me - I can’t thank either of them enough for the opportunities they have given me.
“It’s been great to learn from two world class trainers (Jamie Richards and Mark Walker), I’ve been very lucky in that regard. Both were very good to me - I can’t thank either of them enough for the opportunities they have given me.” - Sam Bergerson
At the start of the 2023/24 season, Te Akau announced that Bergerson would step up into the promised training partnership with Walker. Together they accomplished 169 wins and over $8,000,000 in prizemoney in New Zealand alone last season, championed by Imperatriz (I Am Invincible) and G1 Zabeel Classic victress Campionessa (NZ) (Contributer {Ire}).
A vivid memory for Bergerson is his first top-flight victory as a trainer, taking out the G1 Tarzino Trophy last September at Hawkes Bay with Skew Wiff (NZ) (Savabeel); “I don’t think anyone’s trained a Group 1 winner as fast as I have!”
“It’s your whole life,” Bergerson continued. “I’m extremely lucky that I get to train the top echelon of Australasian thoroughbreds, from the top bloodlines in New Zealand and Australia. I have a fantastic opportunity to nurse them along and train them.
Skew Wiff (NZ), was Bergerson's first Group 1 winner as a trainer winning the Tarzino Trophy | Image courtesy of Peter Rubery (Race Images Palmerston North)
“I have to pinch myself, with how fortunate I am to be in this position. It’s been an unbelievable first year.”
The future looks bright
Amongst David Ellis’ yearling purchases this year, one name sticks out in particular for Bergerson; a filly by Wootton Bassett (GB), out of Te Akau’s nine-time Group 1-winning Avantage (Fastnet Rock). Now named Avantaggia, Ellis paid $2,100,000 for her at the Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale from the draft of breeder Coolmore, who previously paid $4,100,000 for the mare through Gavelhouse Plus at the end of her racing career.
Avantaggia as a yearling | Image courtesy of Magic Millions
“It’s full circle, it’s pretty surreal,” Bergerson said. “When I first started at Middle Barn, Avantage and Melody Belle were there, and I got to latch onto Avantage. I never got to strap her at the races, but I was swimming her every afternoon. She was a fantastic horse to work with, so tough and gritty, and so versatile as well.
“She was an amazing mare, and to see her first foal here - it’s pretty cool. She has plenty of similar traits to mum, which is exciting to see.
“There’s a bit of pressure on her! But fingers crossed that she can be half as good as mum.”
“She (Avantage) was an amazing mare, and to see her first foal (Avantaggia) here - it’s pretty cool. She has plenty of similar traits to mum, which is exciting to see.” - Sam Bergerson
Bergerson highlighted a couple of other strong juveniles that Te Akau have waiting in the wings; $1,300,000 Magic Millions Gold Coast Yearling Sale purchase Return To Conquer (Snitzel) put in a professional performance when trialling at Matamata recently, and runner up Belle Du Monde (Zoustar) has also impressed him with her development.
“She’s really, really nice,” Bergerson said. “We think she could be one of our top drawer 2-year-olds.”
With a stellar first season complete and nearly 50 2-year-olds coming through the ranks, the future with Te Akau Racing looks bright for Bergerson.
“It’s an exciting time to be part of the industry,” he said. “We’ve got boxes at Cranbourne, and we’re ripping into it here in New Zealand. I’m looking forward to the next couple of years. Hopefully the success of Te Akau continues, and we can keep up a strong force here in New Zealand and Australia.”
