Manikato

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Manikato (1975–1984) was a champion Australian racehorse of the late 1970s and early 1980s.

1 Career
2 After retiring
3 Statistics
4 Group One victories
5 Group 2 wins
6 See also
7 References

[edit] Career

Costing only $3,500, he was the second Australian horse, after Kingston Town, to win $1 million in stakes, and won, by today's standards, 11 races which are counted as Group One's.

A descendant of Nearco, Manikato was originally trained by Bon Hoysted who died soon after Manikato's 1978 Golden Slipper victory. His brother Bob Hoysted took over the training of the horse subsequently.

Manikato had to overcome serious adversity in his career. He suffered a bleeding attack, a heart attack, and damaged his suspensory tendons. After every race, Bon could be seen wrapping the horse's legs with plastic shopping bags filled with ice, to reduce inflammation.

[edit] After retiring

After retiring from racing in 1983, Manikato was plagued by a virus which he could not shake off. He was humanely euthanased on February 13, 1984. He is buried within sight of some of his greatest wins, the winning post at Moonee Valley Racecourse.