Conquistador Cielo Is Euthanized at 23

Conquistador Cielo, voted horse of the year in 1982 after winning the 1 1/2-mile Belmont Stakes five days after his victory in the Metropolitan Mile, was euthanized Tuesday at Claiborne Farm in Paris, Ky., after a hoof disease caused him to founder in his left foreleg.

Conquistador Cielo, who was 23, had a brief but spectacular 13-race career that was compromised by shin injuries.

He missed the first two Triple Crown races, the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness, but over a sloppy track won the Belmont by 14 lengths.

His bold trainer, Woody Stephens, brought Conquistador Cielo back in a week that had started with a 7 1/4-length win over older horses in the Metropolitan.

Conquistador Cielo, who won the Metropolitan in 1:33, setting a Belmont Park record, was the first of Stephens’ unprecedented five straight victories in the Belmont.

Conquistador Cielo, owned by Henryk de Kwiatkowski, ran only three times after the Belmont, his career ending with a third-place finish in the Travers.

The colt was syndicated by De Kwiatkowski, who retained 10 of the 40 breeding shares, for a book value of $36.4 million, which was a record at the time.

Conquistador Cielo was not a preeminent sire, but his progeny -- almost 800 foals -- earned more than $55 million.

The chief earner was Marquetry, winner of the 1991 Hollywood Gold Cup, whose purses totaled $2.8 million.