Walter Haefner - owner and founder of Moyglare Stud dies in Switzerland
Founder and owner of the Moyglare Stud in Ireland, Walter Haefner, passed away at age 101 in Switzerland. The Zurich-born businessman has many achievements to his name, and contributed a great deal to the sport of horse-racing.
Haefner’s achievements were highlighted in these words:
"A Zurich native, born in 1910, the 101-year-old Haefner, a gifted businessman and visionary philanthropist, was a true sportsman at heart with a deep and abiding love for the breeding of thoroughbred racehorses and the techniques and science of racing.”
The operation was started nearly fifty years ago from Ireland and over the years, it has expanded past many boundaries, and achieved success world-wide.
The famous colours of white, red and black are exhibited at nearly every racing mega-event including the Royal Ascot.
Moyglare Stud Farm was represented by Princess Highway, trained by Dermot Weld, in the Group 2 Ribblesdale Stakes at Royal Ascot on 21st June, 2012, where she landed a 6 length victory over, The Fugue.
Trainer Dermot Weld devoted 40 years of his career to this firm, and enjoyed some truly outstanding moments including Go And Go’s victory in the Grade 1 Belmont Stakes at Belmont Park in 1990, where he defeated the Nicholas Zito trained, Thirty Six Red by
8 lengths.
In May, 2003, the Weld trained, Refuse To Bend, landed an immense victory in the Group 1 Sagitta 2,000 Guineas Stakes Showcase Race at Newmarket, where he triumphed over the Mick Channon trained, Zafeen.
Another remarkable of this firm is Casual Conquest’s victory in the Group 1 Tattersalls Gold Cup at Curragh in May, 2009, where he succeeded over his stable-mate, Famous Name, by a margin of 5 ½ lengths.
Walter Haefner’s achievements are immense in horseracing, and he contributed an extraordinary amount to this sport, a statement about his passion for racing stated:
"A firm believer that the strength in the pedigree comes from the quality of the broodmare, and that the ultimate test for any racehorse is racecourse competition, Haefner stuck to this doctrine throughout the stud's development.”
Moyglare Stud is now handled by the rest of Haefner’s family who will continue his legacy.
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