Continuing with our twenty-year anniversary celebrations, we are sharing articles featuring Arabian horses who have made our hearts beat a little faster. This piece on the iconic stallion Amir El Shaklan was first published in The Arabian Magazine in May 2010.
There are few in the world that have not heard of how the Australian legend, Amir El Shaklan, was conceived: El Shaklan, leased to the UK, covered Peter and Vivienne Hall’s mare, Sascha, next to the railway lines at the Ascot Showground. The resulting colt, Amir El Shaklan, was to have a huge impact on his home country of Australia and his passing on 16 July 2006 was greatly mourned. In March this year, his breeders and lifelong companions at Fairview Arabian Stud held their first function since his passing.
Peter and Vivienne founded Fairview Arabian Stud back in 1968 and between the East Coast Championships and Australian National Championships they held a presentation and stud sale, offering some of their beautiful Arabian horses to discerning breeders. Peter and Vivienne have made the reluctant decision to reduce numbers at the stud. Lot 1 of the sale was the mesmerising stallion Ibn Amir El Shaklan, he is the son of the legendary Amir El Shaklan and out of Halina’s Estana (Estashan (imp Germany) x Halina Shaklan by El Shaklan). Before this iridescent grey 11-year-old stallion made his appearance, Michael Semchison told the story of Amir El Shaklan.
“Amir El Shaklan was a stallion of extreme Arabian type coupled with a beautiful balance of harmony of structure. He was 27 years of age when he was laid to rest here on the property.
“Amir was an amazing sire, producing over 300 pure-bred Arabian progeny and numerous part-bred Arabian progeny. Over 250 pure-bred offspring are major show winners and A Class show winners. Amir El Shaklan himself was the winner of 23 Supreme Championship Awards. He was the sire of 18 Australian National Champion Arabians at halter and eight Australian National Reserve Championship winners. The list of his grandget that have been awarded championship titles at the Australian National Arabian Championships is considerable.
“Amir El Shaklan is the long-reigning leading sire of show-winning progeny in Australia. He is also currently acknowledged as Australia’s Leading Arabian Sire. His get and grandget have dominated the Australian Arabian show scene for the past 20 years. Amir was an Australian sire and show horse of great significance and his record speaks for it self. He consistently produced true Arabian type, size and correct structure, crossing over a variety of bloodlines.
“Amir establishes himself as a great improver and his genetic pre-potency ensures that his progeny breed on.
“In 2007 after his death, the Australian Arabian Horse Society awarded Amir El Shaklan a Lifetime Achievement Award, the first time that this award had been given.
“Amir El Shaklan’s famous progeny are too numerous to list, but here are some of the many worthy of note:
- The beautiful 1996 and 1997 Australian National Champion Arabian mares Windella Silver Fascination and Windella Silver Shadow, who are now with Mystica Arabians in Western Australia
- The exceptional Australian National Champion Arabian Stallion Fairview Klassique, exported to the USA where, in 1996, he was awarded the title of US National Champion Arabian Stallion, the ultimate award for this great stallion
- Amir’s first daughter to be awarded Australian National Champion Arabian Filly was Malmsbury Samira, who has gone on to create her own dynasty, producing Australian National Champion Arabian Stallion Sarazin and the Reserve Australian National Champion Mare Safiyah by SK Shakla Khan (imp. USA)
- The beautiful stallion Espiration, 1994 Australian National Champion, was also a great sire as is his brother Fairview Exclusive, 1994 Australian National Champion Colt
- The truly exotic and masculine, elegant stallion Ibn Amir El Shaklan, a multiple A-class champion and twice an Australian National Championship Top Ten. He was chosen to stay on at Fairview and follow as a sire in Amir El Shaklan’s footsteps. Ibn Amir is very special and very beautiful and he is only available for sale as Fairview has decided to reduce their breeding operation by 50%.
“Amir El Shaklan was a genetic masterpiece, an Arabian horse in which all the pieces came together in a unique and beautiful form.
“His legacy to Arabian horse breeding in Australia is immeasurable and unrivalled. As an Arabian sire of great significance, he was simply the best.”
With the music playing, Ibn Amir El Shaklan then came around the corner to enter the arena. With twilight falling and the spotlights shining, Ibn Amir’s beautiful head was profiled against the lush hedges surrounding the area. Captured in a moment, Ibn Amir’s expression carried the true Arabian presence that we all love so ardently and it was a truly spine-tingling moment. Ibn Amir El Shaklan carries a great lineage to El Shaklan and while his sale truly is a heart-breaking one, he is certain to have a major influence on whichever breeding programme he ends up at.
Amir’s story
The story of Amir El Shaklan originates in Germany nearly 27 years ago. In 1977, the mare Sascha was purchased from the West German Government Stud, the Marbach State Stud. She was sired by the international champion stallion Saher who, in turn was sired by the Nazeer son, Ghazal (Egypt), and she was from the champion show mare Shamet (by Hadban Enzahi). Sascha was purchased specifically to be bred to the outstanding German-bred colt El Shaklan, who was only a yearling at this time.
In 1978, Sascha was bred to the European Champion El Shaklan, but failed to become pregnant. Both El Shaklan and Sascha had been entered for the International Arabian Show to be held at Ascot in England and, as fate would have it, Sascha was in season at this show. El Shaklan was exhibited at the International Show, winning his class and also becoming the 1978 International Champion Pure Arabian Stallion. It had been arranged that, immediately after the judging, El Shaklan would be bred to Sascha and so, with both horses still wearing their international rosettes won at the show, the breeding took place at the Royal Ascot showground!
On 24 June 1979, Sascha produced the resulting foal – an outstanding chestnut colt who was born in England and was named Amir El Shaklan. Both Amir and his dam were exported to Fairview Arabian Stud and arrived in Australia in February 1980. Sascha was very thin, having given everything she could to her foal at her own expense – unfortunately, she never recovered – but Amir looked fantastic.
Amir El Shaklan quickly developed a huge fan club. He won his first A-class Supreme Championship award in 1981 and amassed an enviable show record of 23 Supreme Championships through to 1985 when Amir fractured the spine in his rump and broke his tail.
Amir was 27 years old when he died and he was laid to rest at 8.30am on Sunday 16 July. He is buried in front of his yard and a garden has been established there. His genetic legacy has continued to shine through in the Australian show-rings and breeding farms – his unique influence remains quite unprecedented in this country, even four years after his passing.
First published in The Arabian Magazine in May 2010.
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