
Few French horses have caught the public's imagination like Treve has in recent weeks. The five-year-old thoroughbred is targeting a unique treble at the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe. A promotional film, "Treve Confidential" shows an animated projection of the horse galloping across Paris' famous landmarks.

Treve and jockey Thierry Jarnet made it back-to-back wins after winning the "Arc" in 2013 and last year (pictured).

Thierry Jarnet salutes the win in front of 50,000-strong crowd at Paris' Longchamp racecourse last year. The French jockey will be piloting Treve again in this year's race.

Treve and her trainer Criquette Head-Maarek. "There will be great sadness in my heart when she retires. But whatever she does in this race she is still magnifique. I love her," Head-Maarek said.

Treve's success and relationship with her trainer Criquette Head-Maarek has drawn parallels with Frankel and Henry Cecil (pictured). The thoroughbred was unbeaten in his 14-race career.

Jockey Richard Dunwoody on Desert Orchid at Cheltenham in 1990. Equine infatuations are nothing new in Britain, the grey, who won the Cheltenham Gold Cup in 1989, was one of the most lauded over the fences in the UK.

In the United States, California Chrome (with jockey in purple silks) earned itself a cult following despite coming up just short in its bid for the Triple Crown last year.

Dawn Run was the most successful race mare in National Hunt history, capped with victory at the Cheltenham Gold Cup. When she broke her neck racing, it made front page news and a statue (above) was erected in her memory at Cheltenham.

Subzero is Australia's most famous living horse known to school kids across the country after winning the Melbourne Cup, his last ever race in 1992.

A more recent Australian success story is Black Caviar, who retired from flat racing after her 25th consecutive victory in 2013.

Red Rum gained British and global notoriety by winning the Grand National on three occasions. The four-mile, 3? furlong race includes 30 fences and is often described as the ultimate test of a horse's courage.

When French thoroughbred Kauto Star died earlier this year after a fall in his paddock, his former trainer Paul Nicholls said the horse "had touched lots of hearts" as well as winning $6 million in prize money in an illustrious career.

Seabiscuit became a remarkable symbol of hope during the Great Depression in the U.S. The horse, which was undersized and knobbly kneed, was the unlikeliest of champions. His story has inspired two Hollywood movies.

The U.S. loves its Triple Crown winners and Ron Turcotte (pictured) rode Secretariat to that particular accolade, winning all three races in the fastest times ever. He had a 33-cent stamp made with his image while ESPN named the horse the 35th most influential North American athlete in history.

A three-time Cheltenham Gold Cup winner, Arkle became a national legend in the Republic of Ireland, the population claiming his strength came from drinking Guinness twice a day.

Phar Lap remains a national icon in Australia and New Zealand -- his heart is still on show in an Australian museum. He had a film made about him and a song penned after his illustrious career.

Mill Reef won almost everything on the flat from the Epsom Derby to the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe in the early 1970s. The U.S.-bred thoroughbred is ranked as one of the leading horses of all time.