The Aga Khan: a purist whose meticulous methods were magnificently vindicated on the racecourse

It says everything about the Aga Khan’s influence on the turf that his racing and breeding empires set the benchmark to which others aspired. Only Khalid Abdullah’s Juddmonte Farms and the Coolmore syndicate driven by John Magnier have come close to matching that standard.

In contrast to Magnier, the Aga Khan – like Abdullah – had an untutored eye when he entered the thoroughbred orbit in 1960. Just 23 when his father Prince Aly Khan died, and lacking any previous involvement in the business, he would elevate the Aga Khan Studs to stratospheric heights. His remorseless pursuit of excellence reached its apogee five decades later, when his horses won five Group 1s and two Group 2s on Arc weekend in 2009.

The true litmus of that achievement was that it was gained with constraints on his financial outlay that did not shackle Middle Eastern potentates with whom he competed. The spiritual leader to 20 million Ismaili Muslims strove hard to balance the books every year and failure to achieve that would result in the sale of some of his most valuable broodmares. Many felt his studs would be adversely affected but the strength in depth of the broodmare band meant younger relatives invariably filled the breach.