Less than two weeks after the loss of Deep Impact, Shadai Stallion Station suffered another blow with the death on Saturday of King Kamehameha (Kingmambo), the twice leading sire in Japan in 2010 and 2011.
Purchased as a foal for 78 million yen by Makoto Kaneko, King Kamehameha was crowned Japanese champion 3-year-old in 2004, highlighted by his win the Japanese Derby.
Recently pensioned, King Kamehameha had been on restricted duties since 2016.
H
e is the
sire of Japanese champions Leontes, Duramente, Rey De Oro, Lovely Day, the
fillies' Triple Crown winner Apapane, Hong Kong Group 1 victor Rulership and
the champion sprinter Lord Kanaloa who has made an exceptional start to his
stud career as the sire of the champion Almond Eye.
King Kamehameha's breeder Katsumi Yoshida of Northern Farm told the Racing Post: "I heard he passed at 5am. In the past five years his condition had improved and then got worse again. His sight was poor because of a cataract.
"Although two huge stars have gone, they have left successors for the next generation. King Kamehameha made a tremendous contribution not only to this farm but also to the Japanese racing scene. I would like to say thank you very much to him."
Following his two sire championships, King Kamehameha was a perennial runner-up to Deep Impact but he was also the Japanese Champion Two-Year-Old Sire in 2008 and 2009.
