All God's Creatures

Very sad day, in the horse world today (11-06-11) >>>

Reigning Olympic champion showjumper Hickstead, ridden by Canada’s Eric Lamaze, collapsed & died today in the show ring in Verona, Italy during a  televised FEI World Cup round ... AFTER completing his round.

“We finished our round, I circled and was leaving the ring, and he collapsed and died of an apparent heart attack,” said an emotional Lamaze. “It is the most tragic thing that has ever happened. We had him until he was 15, and we had a great time together. He was the best horse in the world. We are all devastated.”

At this time, the reason for his death is unknown.

Today's competition was stopped at the request of the riders.

Hickstead, from Torry Pines Stable,  was 15 years old. He was a Dutch Warmblood stallion by Hamlet, out of the mare Jomara.

Hickstead, you will be greatly missed ...

Preliminary findings from the post-mortem on Hickstead, have confirmed an acute aortic rupture, resulting in heart failure.

Further tests are to be conducted to establish the cause of the rupture, but these tests will take a number of weeks to complete and may prove inconclusive.
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