Sultan's Great Day (March 22, 1981 – March 22, 2004) was a

black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white have o ...

American Saddlebred The American Saddlebred is a horse breed from the United States. This breed is referred to as the "Horse America Made". Descended from riding-type horses bred at the time of the American Revolution, the American Saddlebred includes the Nar ...

stallion A stallion is a male horse that has not been gelded (castrated). Stallions follow the conformation and phenotype of their breed, but within that standard, the presence of hormones such as testosterone may give stallions a thicker, "cresty" nec ...

sired by

Supreme Sultan Supreme Sultan (March 12, 1966 – December 6, 1983) was an American Saddlebred stallion. He was a chestnut, and was sired by Valley View Supreme, out of Melody Olee. Sultan was sold to Barlite Farms as a yearling, was shown as a 2-year-old, but th ...

, out of the

mare A mare is an adult female horse or other equine. In most cases, a mare is a female horse over the age of three, and a filly is a female horse three and younger. In Thoroughbred horse racing, a mare is defined as a female horse more than four ...

Supremes Cassandra. Great Day, as he was commonly called, was a twice World's Champion Fine Harness Stallion. In his debut performance, he earned the title 1983 2-year-old World's Champion fine harness stallion. Other prestigious wins followed during his 2 and 3 year old years. He was retired to stud at the age of 4, but was shown a few more times in later years. Great Day was referred to as "one of the most prolific sires of world's champions throughout the 1990s". He sired 387 registered

offspring In biology, offspring are the young creation of living organisms, produced either by a single organism or, in the case of sexual reproduction, two organisms. Collective offspring may be known as a brood or progeny in a more general way. This ca ...

of which 106 were ribbon winners, 63 were futurity ribbon winners, and 24 went on to become champions in their respective disciplines.

Early life and performance career

Sultan's Great Day 76479 was

foal A foal is an equine up to one year old; this term is used mainly for horses, but can be used for donkeys. More specific terms are colt for a male foal and filly for a female foal, and are used until the horse is three or four. When the foal i ...

ed March 22, 1981. The breeder of record is Mrs. Hymel Fishkin of

Gibsonia, Pennsylvania Gibsonia is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in Richland Township, Allegheny County, in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, north of the city of Pittsburgh. It had a population of 2,733 at the 2010 Census. Its ZIP code is 1504 ...

. His sire was Supreme Sultan, and his dam was the mare Supremes Casindra by Stonewall Supreme. His haircoat was a deep black color, as were his mane and tail. Great Day made his performance debut as a two-year-old competing in fine harness competition He was sold after his title of champion to Donna Moore for Linda Johnson. Sultan was purchased by

William Shatner William Shatner (born March 22, 1931) is a Canadian actor. In a career spanning seven decades, he is best known for his portrayal of James T. Kirk in the ''Star Trek'' franchise, from his 1965 debut as the captain of the starship USS Enterpri ...

after he won his second World's Championship Horse Show. He then started living at

Belle Reve Farm Belle Reve Farm is a horse farm located in Versailles, Kentucky that was owned by actor William Shatner, a breeder of American Saddlebred show horses. His stallion Sultan's Great Day was a two-time world's champion performer, and the farm's p ...

. Shatner commented on Sultan's Great Day, “Great Day is to me what a

Rodin François Auguste René Rodin (12 November 184017 November 1917) was a French sculptor, generally considered the founder of modern sculpture. He was schooled traditionally and took a craftsman-like approach to his work. Rodin possessed a uniqu ...

statue is to an art collector, except that this work of art is alive.” Shatner said "the magnificent part of owning horses is breeding horses." Sultan's Great Day was bred to champion Saddlebred mares, and produced champions.

Breeding and offspring

Sultan's Great Day became a breeding stallion at age 4 under the management and supervision of Donna Moore. Among Donna's top breeding selections were daughters of New Yorker, a widely recognized sire of champion Saddlebreds. During his breeding career, Sultan's Great Day sired 106

Kentucky State Fair World's Championship Horse Show The World's Championship Horse Show, held at the Kentucky State Fairgrounds in Louisville, Kentucky, in Freedom Hall, is a large horse show that includes the American Saddlebred, Hackney pony, Dutch Harness Horse, and Standardbred breeds. It is ...

ribbon winners with 454 ribbons (1st-8th), 24 champions, and 63 futurity ribbon winners. The Kentucky State Fair World's Championship Horse Show is said to be the same "to saddlebreds in August what Churchill Downs is to thoroughbreds in May."

Pedigree

Sultan's Great Day's grandsire, Valley View Supreme is the only stallion ever to become Three Gaited World Grand Champion.

References

{{Reflist Individual American Saddlebreds