“Micolo” is an Italian word that echoes mica, meaning “a tiny amount.”
Yet Micolo was also the name of a Thoroughbred who, despite never winning a major race, gave his owner and rider Nicola Galli the greatest possible measure of satisfaction.
For just over a quarter of a century, horse and rider lived almost in symbiosis—a journey spanning more than nine thousand five hundred days, during which their hearts seemed to beat as one. The same rhythm of passion: racing together for eleven years, hearts pounding, and then, through fifteen further years of well-earned rest for the son of Bering and Lady Quachita, sustained by the quiet affection of close friends.
Born on March 1st, 1995, and passing on May 9th, 2021, Micolo continues to live on—not only in Nicola Galli’s heart. Their story, shaped by dedication and love, remains exemplary.
A SYMBOL AND AN ETHICAL–AESTHETIC MODEL
Micolo has become the embodiment of a different kind of horseracing—one that is not only aesthetic, but also ethical. It is what Nicola Galli calls a “humanistically expressed horsemanship.”
A former gentleman rider, now a breeder and owner of a stable in France—named, fittingly, after the horse closest to his heart—Galli openly draws inspiration from the designer and philanthropist Brunello Cucinelli: “Today, in Italy, the true visionary is him. He built an empire on humanistic thought. I have not built such an empire yet, but I am moving towards it. My own humanistic philosophy is directed above all towards the animal, not only towards the accounts—although today I do manage those well, together with my collaborators and a structure that supports me in every respect.”
WELL-BEING AND HEALTH
Nicola Galli’s “humanistic horsemanship” ensured that Micolo received something that is far from guaranteed for a Thoroughbred at the end of its racing career: a life in open paddocks, free of obligation.
This peaceful old age is not an exception, but a rule. It applies to all the horses of Scuderia Micolo, including those not destined for breeding.
“It is a matter of respect,” says Galli, who also works as a financial advisor.
“Mine has become a humanistic equine economy because I try to offer horses the best possible life. These extraordinary animals are capable of thought, but not of choice. If they could speak, they might tell us what they truly want—whether they even wish to race. I try to replace their imposed path with something far more human.”
CONSTRAINT AND MONOTONY
While results on the track are decisive for any stable, for Galli the health of the Thoroughbred remains a priority—and he does not hesitate to question the system itself: “It is true that horses love to run. But they love to run together, freely, in open fields. Racing is a form of constraint. Their daily life is monotonous: apart from one hour of training, they spend twenty-three hours confined in their stalls. Bringing them to race without absolute certainty of their condition troubles me. It has been unsettling me for some time now.”
THE ITALIAN RACECOURSE
It is also for this reason that Nicola Galli has chosen to step away from Italian racecourses: “I left them with the awareness that I would not return. Not because I dislike the environment, but because I no longer feel it as mine. Things have changed. They have deteriorated. Situations have worsened. I no longer feel the desire to walk those tracks that, for years, were my home—because I spent more time on racecourses than in my own house.”
LOVE AT FIRST SIGHT
The former gentleman rider recalls his first encounter with Micolo: “I discovered him in 1996 at the Newmarket sales. I saw a bold young colt who, startled by the auctioneer’s hammer, flipped over in the ring. At the time, I lived on intense emotions, and he captured me instantly. I raised my hand and bought him—even though I did not have the one hundred million lire required. I found a way to pay for him, through a series of coincidences. Our story lasted twenty-six years. I learned to understand his difficult, fearful nature, and he left an indelible mark on my life.”
A WORD WAS ENOUGH
That uniqueness is captured in an anecdote that reveals the deep bond between Micolo and Nicola: “Eight hundred metres from the finish,” Galli recalls, “while others would raise the whip, I would speak to him. ‘Come on, Miki, we’re almost there.’ He listened to me every day, at dawn, when I took him out to train. He understood my voice. He would take a breath, expand his chest, and I could feel my legs—tight against his ribs—being pushed apart. Micolo would lower himself by fifteen or twenty centimetres and become a flash. I have only ever experienced something like that with him. It is an emotion that stays with me forever. It was his effort, his commitment, offered to me—for a single word.”
THE MARK OF RESPECT
The encounter with Micolo changed Nicola Galli profoundly: “I trained him, I rode him, I accompanied him in races. We won quite a lot, we lost much more, but together we achieved meaningful results. Yet what matters most is that he transformed my life. He left in me an indelible sense of respect—for horses, and for animals in general. A rule of conduct that I have carried with me ever since. Today, as a breeder, I do not think only in economic terms. I am guided by emotion. Like Micolo, all the horses in my stable are given the chance to enjoy a peaceful old age, focused on well-being. Their health comes first.”
HORSES AS FAMILY
In episode 106 of Mondo Galoppo, titled Micolo like a son, Nicola Galli offered a reflection that remains essential: “If everyone who owns a horse treated it as a member of the family, our world would be different. Less tied to money, betting, and budgets—and far more capable of attracting passion and new generations.”
THE MISSION OF FIL-IPPICA
In the video interview accompanying this article, Nicola Galli also speaks about the future of Scuderia Micolo and the results achieved by his breeding operation in France.
His vision of a “humanistically expressed” horsemanship aligns perfectly with the mission of Fil-ippica, which seeks to apply a humanistic culture to the equestrian world—often controversial—by bringing together ethics and aesthetics, in pursuit of that demanding horizon where truth and beauty can be found.
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