Mystery surrounding Shergar’s disappearance

Talking about Shergar we can be absolutely certain about his racing career, fairly certain what happened on the night he was kidnapped but can only guess what happened afterwards.

Shergar was bred by the Aga Khan in Kildare and went into training with Michael Stoute at Newmarket. Before he ever raced he was destined for breeding. He never made a profit on the race course. His insurance premium while he was racing was £300,000. Add in training fees, entrance fees and other expenses and the total would far exceed his prize money which was less than £500,000.
He made a winning debut at Newbury but was beaten on his second outing in the William Hill Futurity, so much so that he was only rated 31 among two-year olds that year.
Next year he hit the headlines at Sandown and one correspondent said that with Shergar still at 8 to 1 for the Epsom Derby that was the time “ to bet like men”.
Ten days later he won the Chester Vase at his ease and on his next outing started at odds on to win in Epsom. He won easily and added the Irish Derby at the Curragh. He then was tested against older horses and won the King George and Queen Elizabeth Diamond Stakes. There was nothing left only the Prix de l’Arc at Longchamps. As a preliminary race he was entered in the St Leger.
In spite of starting odds on he finished a far fourth and he was withdrawn from the Prix de l’Arc. Why is a matter for debate but it could relate to the fact that he had been syndicated for £10m and another loss would have done serious damage to that value.
He was retired to stand at the Ballymany Stud in Kildare and when he arrived in Newbridge a band paraded him through the town. He had completed one season when disaster struck.
One evening at 8.30pm raiders drove into the stud yard, held the groom, James Fitzgerald’s, family at gunpoint and took him outside. Fitzgerald was forced to help the gang load Shergar into a horsebox.
Fitzgerald was put into another car and both drove away. Fitzgerald was kept for a number of hours and then released. In spite of wide spread searches Shergar was never seen again.
There were wholesale theories and suggestions most of them with no foundation. Some of the stories were so farfetched that there have been books, films and TV programmes on the incident. There were reported contacts but eventually the gang contacted the Aga Khan’s office in Paris.
They supposedly agreed to provide evidence that he was still alive but this was bungled and they then threatened to kill the horse.
Four days after the kidnapping they made their last contact and that was the end of the affair.
It raised many questions. Who was responsible? Was it the IRA? Where was he being kept? Were the gang forced to kill him because they could not control him?: Almost all of the questions were never answered. The only definite conclusion was that one of the greatest racehorses of all time was no more.
Shergar, wonder racehorse was kidnapped from Ballymany Stud on February 8, 1983 – 29 years ago this week.