Champion sire Dansili dies of illness in England at age 25

Following a short but aggressive illness, champion sire Dansili died this week at his birthplace, Banstead Manor Stud in Newmarket, England, shortly before his 26th birthday.

Bred by Juddmonte Farms and sired by Danehill, he was the first foal out of the listed winner Hasili, who went on to become a Blue Hen of considerable note as the dam of six consecutive graded-stakes winners including five individual Group or Grade 1 winners.

Dansili may not have won his Group 1, but he made up for this by becoming one of the leading British-based sires and broodmare sires of his generation.

"As a racehorse he was durable, genuine, consistent and expertly handled by André Fabre throughout his career," Juddmonte U.K. general manager Simon Mockridge said. "Although he deserved a Group 1 victory on the racecourse, having been placed in six, that somehow always managed to evade him."

Trained in France by Fabre, Dansili won his only race as a 2-year-old and his racecourse debut at 3, making him a leading contender for the 1999 Poule d'Essai des Poulains (G1), also known as the French 2000 Guineas, Fifteen runners went to post, among the most in the race's history, and Dansili found only Sendawar too good.

Dansili ran four more times that season, winning the Prix Messidor (G3) and placing in the Prix Jacques le Marois (G1) and Prix du Moulin de Longchamp (G1).

A tough and consistent campaigner, Dansili returned for a 4-year-old season when he won both the Prix Edmond Blanc (G3) and Prix du Muguet (G2) and placed four further times at the highest level, including running second to the "Iron Horse" Giant's Causeway in the Sussex Stakes (G1) at Goodwood.

At Churchill Downs in 2000, Dansili closed from 10th in the stretch to finish third to War Chant and North East Bound in the Breeders' Cup Mile. He was credited with running the fastest closing quarter-mile in the history of the North American championships.

Soon afterward, Dansili was returned to Banstead Manor Stud to start a new chapter as a stallion. He sired 22 Group 1 winners, starting at a fee of $10,500 and rising to a peak of $135,000 thanks to some outstanding horses such as Flintshire, Harbinger, Rail Link, Proviso, Queen's Trust, Dank and The Fugue. He was champion sire in France in 2006.

Dansili also was an exceptional broodmare sire of the likes of Nezwaah, Cliffs Of Moher, as well as Irish Oaks heroine Chicquita, Time Test, Snow Sky, Agent Murphy, Astaire and Juddmonte stallion Expert Eye.

Pensioned from stud duties in 2018 at age 22, Dansili will have his influence will be felt at Juddmonte for many years to come through his daughters in the broodmare band and via current Juddmonte stallion Bated Breath, whose career has closely echoed that of his sire.

"During his 17 years at stud he played an intrinsic role alongside Oasis Dream in establishing the reputation of the Juddmonte roster," Mockridge said. "A truly wonderful, reliable and uncomplicated character as a stallion, he was a firm favorite of the stallion team and Juddmonte as a whole. He will be greatly missed.”