Fusaichi Pegasus, winner of the 2000 Kentucky Derby and the most expensive racehorse ever sold, died Tuesday at a horse farm. Coolmore Stud Farm, owner of the 26-year-old horse, said he was euthanized due to his “advanced age”.

“He was a fantastic racehorse,” Dermot Ryan, CEO of the farm, said Wednesday. The one-year-old horse was bought by a Japanese businessman for $4 million in July 1998, a record for the time.

“I gave him the nickname ‘Superman’ from day one,” the breeder told the Washington Post in 2000. – He was balanced, muscular, with good bones, he had a great eye, he had this “eagle look.” He stood out. I told everyone, “If he doesn’t win, I’ll never make predictions again.”

In memory of legend and Kentucky Derby winner Fusaichi Pegasus, who passed away at the age of 26.

$4 million annual purchase, multiple bid winner and @coolmoreamerica stallion.

Look back at the pinnacle of his career, winning in 2000. #KeeDerby. pic.twitter.com/FY0CRrPeBW

— Racing TwinSpires 🏇 (@TwinSpires) May 24, 2023

The Kentucky Derby is a horse race held annually in Louisville, Kentucky, USA, and concludes the two-week Kentucky Derby festival. Held since 1875, this is a class I race for three-year-old Thoroughbreds, running over two kilometers. In the US, this is known as “the fastest two minutes in sports” and is called the “Running for the Roses” after the blanket of roses that contains the winner’s prize.

In 2000, Fusaichi Pegasus was sold to Irish breeder Coolmore Stud for over US$70 million (£35 million). The previous record for a potential stallion was US$40m (£24m) paid in 1983 for Sharif Dancer.