Conquistador Cielo (March 20, 1979 – December 17, 2002) was an American

Thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed. Thoroughbreds are ...

racehorse. He is best known for his performances as a three-year-old in 1982 when he won the Belmont Stakes and was voted United States Horse of the Year.

Background

Conquistador Cielo was a bay horse sired by the outstanding breeding stallion

Mr Prospector Mr. Prospector (January 28, 1970 – June 1, 1999) was a Thoroughbred racehorse who became an outstanding breeding stallion and notable sire of sires. A sprinter whose career was cut short by repeated injuries, he won seven of his 14 starts, i ...

. His dam K D Princess was a successful racemare but not a top-class performer. She was descended from Whirl Right, a full-sister to

Whirlaway Whirlaway (April 2, 1938 – April 6, 1953) was a champion American Thoroughbred racehorse who is the fifth winner of the American Triple Crown. He also won the Travers Stakes after his Triple Crown sweep to become the first and only horse to w ...

. He was purchased as a yearling for $150,000 by

Henryk de Kwiatkowski Henryk Richard de Kwiatkowski (February 22, 1924 – March 17, 2003) was a Polish-born member of the Royal Air Force who became an aeronautical engineer, made a fortune in business in North America, and who owned Calumet Farm, one of the mos ...

, and was trained by

Woody Stephens Woody Stephens (September 1, 1913 – August 22, 1998) was an American Thoroughbred horse racing Hall of Fame trainer. Biography Born Woodford Cefis Stephens in Stanton, Kentucky, he had a younger brother named William Ward Stephens who also b ...

Racing career

Racing as a two-year-old, Conquistador Cielo won two races in his four starts. His handlers had hoped the horse would run in the 1982 Kentucky Derby but he was kept out by a leg injury that wasn't healing to the point where his trainer was satisfied it would be completely safe. In the much easier Preakness Prep, the horse won, but still his trainer skipped the

Preakness Stakes The Preakness Stakes is an American thoroughbred horse race held on Armed Forces Day which is also the third Saturday in May each year at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland. It is a Grade I race run over a distance of 9.5 furlongs () o ...

to bring him along on an easier route. Entered in the

Grade I In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

Metropolitan Handicap The Metropolitan Handicap, frequently called the "Met Mile", is an American Grade I Thoroughbred horse race held at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. Open to horses age three and older, it is contested on dirt over a distance of one mile (8 fu ...

, Conquistador Cielo set a track-record while winning by 7 lengths against older horses, breaking Stop The Music's record set in 1973. Trainer Woody Stephens then surprised fans and racing insiders with the announcement that the horse was fit enough to race again five days later in the Belmont Stakes, the final leg of the U.S. Triple Crown races. In the 1982 Belmont Stakes, Conquistador Cielo defeated the opposition, beating Kentucky Derby champion Gato Del Sol by 14 lengths. Before the 1982 racing season was over, he was sold to a breeding syndicate for a then record price of $36.4 million. Conquistador Cielo's performances in 1982 earned him United States Champion 3-Yr-Old Colt and Horse of the Year honors.

Stud record

Retired to

stud Stud may refer to the following terms: Animals * Stud (animal), an animal retained for breeding ** Stud farm, a property where livestock are bred Arts and entertainment * Stud (band), a British progressive rock group * The Stud (bar), a gay ba ...

duty at Claiborne Farm in

Paris, Kentucky Paris is a home rule-class city in Bourbon County, Kentucky. It lies northeast of Lexington on the Stoner Fork of the Licking River. Paris is the seat of its county and forms part of the Lexington–Fayette Metropolitan Statistical Area. As ...

, Conquistador Cielo didn't quite live up to expectations but nevertheless sired more than 60 stakes race winners. Among his progeny were stakes winners

Marquetry Marquetry (also spelled as marqueterie; from the French ''marqueter'', to variegate) is the art and craft of applying pieces of veneer to a structure to form decorative patterns, designs or pictures. The technique may be applied to case fur ...

, Forty Niner Days, Alannon, Mi Cielo, Wagon Limit, and Lexicon. At age 23, the horse suffered an injury to his knee that brought on an acute case of

founder Founder or Founders may refer to: Places *Founders Park, a stadium in South Carolina, formerly known as Carolina Stadium * Founders Park, a waterside park in Islamorada, Florida Arts, entertainment, and media * Founders (''Star Trek''), the ali ...

in his left front leg. The disease resulted in the veterinarian

euthanizing Euthanasia (from el, εὐθανασία 'good death': εὖ, ''eu'' 'well, good' + θάνατος, ''thanatos'' 'death') is the practice of intentionally ending life to eliminate pain and suffering. Different countries have different eutha ...

him on December 17, 2002.

Pedigree

References

{{Belmont Stakes Winners 1979 racehorse births 2002 racehorse deaths Racehorses bred in Florida Racehorses trained in the United States Belmont Stakes winners Eclipse Award winners American Thoroughbred Horse of the Year United States Thoroughbred Racing Hall of Fame inductees Thoroughbred family 8-h