Shadwell founder, Dubai deputy ruler Sheikh Hamdan dies
Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum, a deputy ruler of Dubai and the founder of Shadwell Racing, died Wednesday at age 75, his younger brother and ruler Sheikh Mohammed confirmed on Twitter.
There was no immediate report on the cause of death. News reports said Sheikh Hamdan had traveled abroad for surgery in October and had been in failing health for months.
“We belong to God, and to Him we shall return,” Sheikh Mohammed’s Tweet said Wednesday at 1:41 a.m. EDT. “May God have mercy on you, my brother, my support and my companion.”
Abu Dhabi’s crown prince and United Arab Emirates leader Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nayhan wrote on Twitter, “We lost one of the loyal men of the Emirates after a life full of giving and true patriotism.”
Flags in Dubai were ordered to be flown at half-staff during a 10-day mourning period with government offices closed Thursday through Saturday. “Funeral prayers will be restricted to family members due to the COVID pandemic,” the Dubai Media Office said on Twitter. There was no immediate indication how Saturday’s Dubai World Cup card might be affected.
Sheikh Hamdan’s formal career in government began just before his 26th birthday in 1971, when he was named the United Arab Emirates’ first minister of finance and industry, a title he led the rest of his life. He had been a deputy ruler of Dubai since 1995.
His family’s love of horses preceded his introduction to Thoroughbred racing while he was a student in England. That was where Sheikh Hamdan started his first stable 40 years ago. Within four years he bought the Shadwell Estate in Norfolk for which his racing and breeding operation was named. In time seven breeding farms were opened in the U.K. and Ireland plus Shadwell Farm near Lexington, Ky.
Starting with Kentucky-bred mare Al Bahathri, winner of three major British stakes in 1984 and 1985, Sheikh Hamdan’s list of prominent winners grew exponentially through breeding and buying. His list of champions included Invasor, a $1.4 million purchase who won the 2006 Breeders’ Cup Classic, the 2007 Dubai World Cup, the 2007 U.S. Horse of the Year award and a place in the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame at Saratoga Springs, N.Y.
Invasor and Breeder’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf winner Lahudood helped Sheikh Hamdan and Shadwell win the Eclipse Award as the champion owner of 2007.
“Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid al Maktoum’s lifelong passion to compete at the highest level on an international stage was epitomized by Invasor, who won the 2006 Breeders’ Cup Classic at Churchill Downs to clinch Horse of the Year honors," Churchill Downs racetrack president Mike Anderson said in a written statement Wednesday. "His legacy and famed royal blue and white-striped silks will be fondly remembered by Thoroughbred racing and breeding fans around the world. On behalf of the entire Churchill Downs family, we extend our deepest sympathies to Sheikh Hamdan’s family and friends and the entire Shadwell Stable team.”
The 2006 Belmont Stakes winner Jazil as well as Albertus Maximus, Frosted and Tamarkuz have also earned Grade 1 victories in the U.S. for Shadwell.
Sheikh Hamdan’s greatest success as a horseman was in England, where Nashwan, Dayjur, Erhaab and Battaash were standouts that made Shadwell the British champion flat owner eight times, including last year.