From Ladyship Mile to Miracle Mile … Tuscan Abbe yesterday, who has just been shown to have the Y chromosome.
Photo: Kitty Hill
By Michael Cowley
LES KOSKLIN admits there were times when his promising four-year-old mare, Tuscan Abbe, showed the aggressive behaviour of a stallion, particularly when she was near other mares.
At first the harness racing trainer thought nothing of it. But then the horse won at Bankstown and a swab revealed elevated levels of testosterone.
Officials suspected doping and raided Kosklin’s Newcastle stables in search of evidence. They found none and it was only when the pacer was given an internal examination by a reproductive specialist that the truth emerged.
Tuscan Abbe is a hermaphrodite: a female horse possessing a male Y chromosome and internal male testes that produce large amounts of testosterone known in racing circles as an intersex mare.