Add Category
Tributes continue to flow for champion Australian racehorse Black Caviar following her death on Saturday.
Black Caviar was euthanised after giving birth to a foal, a day shy of her 18th birthday.
She had contracted laminitis, which is a disease of the foot that eventually prevents horses from walking.
Black Caviar, who was trained by Peter Moody, retired in 2013 with 25 wins from 25 starts, earning $7,953,936 in prize money.
Jockey Luke Nolen rode Black Caviar in 22 of her starts, including her famous victory in the Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes at Royal Ascot in 2012.
Prominent race caller Matt Hill said Black Caviar deserved the public affection she attracted during her career.
"She was known as Nelly, that was her stable name, and the public absolutely loved her," Hill told the ABC.
"Very rarely do we get racehorses that transcend the sport.
"We have thousands of racehorses going around every week in Australia and around the world but everybody — even if they didn't follow horse racing — knew who Black Caviar was."
Hill added: "She was a horse that you could ride around the paddocks, particularly in her retirement and she just had a beautiful disposition.
"You can see … how she handled the fame, if you like, with the crowds. She absolutely adored it, and she had a beautiful disposition.
"But when she got onto the racetrack, she was an absolute demon and she wouldn't let anybody pass her."
Hill said Black Caviar — as a sprinter — was the "best Australia's ever seen".
Racing historian Andrew Lemon said it was fitting Black Caviar was being fondly remembered.
"We throw the label champion around but she was unique because she was never beaten and she never raced in anything but the very best of company," he said.
"I've looked back over the history and in the 20th, 21st century – internationally —there hasn't been a horse who can claim that particular record."
Lemon said Black Caviar had qualities only the best racehorses possessed.
"She was a horse who seemed to say, 'I'm going to win this race'," he said.
"She didn't always go straight to the front but there was just that second gear that she had.
"There's something about champions that it's really hard to put into words what it is."
On Saturday, Moody said he cried for an hour after receiving the news of Black Caviar's death.
"You don't think it affects you," Moody told racing.com.
"But you are being stupid to think it doesn't.
"It's impossible not to get attached to most animals, let alone one like her."
Nolen said he felt "numb" after learning of Black Caviar's passing.
"It's a little bit of a hollow feeling, a blur, because she meant a lot to us," he said.