What is "balanchine"

Balanchine is a retired Thoroughbred racehorse, bred in the United States and trained in the United Kingdom and Dubai. In a racing career which lasted from September 1993 until October 1995 she ran eight times and won four races. After winning both her races a two-year-old Balanchine was narrowly beaten in the 1994 1000 Guineas before winning the Classic Epsom Oaks. She then recorded her most important success when defeating male opposition in the 1994 Irish Derby. After recovering from a life-threatening illness, she returned in 1995 but failed to win. Balanchine was one of the first important successes for Godolphin Racing.

Balanchine is a crater on the planet Mercury. It contains blue colored rays that radiate from the center of the crater. These rays inspired the name of the crater due to their similarity to the tutu in George Balanchine's Serenade.

The Balanchine (sometimes known as the Balanchine Stakes), is a horse race run over a distance of 1,800 metres (nine furlongs) on turf in February or March at Meydan Racecourse in Dubai. The race is named after Balanchine, a horse who won the Epsom Oaks and the Irish Derby in 1994. The race is restricted to female racehorses aged at least four years old, although three-year-olds bred in the southern hemisphere are also qualified.

It was first contested in 2004 at Nad Al Sheba Racecourse before being transferred to Meydan in 2010.

The Balanchine began as an ungraded race before being elevated to Listed class in 2006. The race was promoted to Group 3 level in 2009 and became a Group 2 event in 2011.