O'Reilly passes away CHAMPION sire O’Reilly passed away early today.
New Zealand’s Waikato Stud owner Mark Chittick today announced the 21-year-old stallion died “peacefully” in his paddock.
O’Reilly rated behind only the phenomenal Sir Tristram and Zabeel as New Zealand’s all-time black type sire.
He sired 16 individual Group 1 winners, including
Silent Achiever,
Sacred Falls,
Master O’Reilly,
Shamexpress,
Shamrocker and Alamosa.
During the past two seasons, O’Reilly sired 15 individual Stakes winners and his career 77 Stakes winners ranks only behind Sir Tristram and Zabeel.
Chittick posted a tribute to O’Reilly on the Waikato Stud web site.
“All good things must come to an end. O’Reilly has been wholly and solely responsible for the go forward and momentum of Waikato Stud as we know it today,” Chittick said.
“We could not be more proud of his achievements or more thankful for his legacy.
“He has certainly been a breed shaper and we are indeed fortunate to be able to continue his amazing
influence at the stud through his daughters and with his exciting sire son Sacred Falls in 2015.
“He has provided us and many people with some terrific highlights and will continue to do so in the future.”
