The Longchamp carries a a crew of 12 Filipinos and one Indonesian, Christensen said.

CNN: Pirates hijack German-owned ship in Gulf of Aden

The winner is now rated the 4-1 favourite for the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe at Longchamp in October.

BBC: Snow Fairy beats Meeznah to win the Oaks at Epsom

Those triumphs followed on from ending his juvenile campaign with Group One wins in Longchamp's Grand Criterium and the Dewhurst Stakes at Newmarket.

BBC: Gibraltar wins the Sussex

The MV Longchamp was seized by seven pirates early in the morning, said a spokesman for the ship's owner, Bernhard Schulte Ship Management Company, of Hamburg, Germany.

CNN: Pirates hijack German-owned ship in Gulf of Aden