Shergar was an Irish-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse. After a very successful season in 1981 he was retired to the Ballymany Stud in County Kildare, Ireland. In 1983 he was stolen from the stud, and a ransom of £2 million was demanded; it was not paid, and negotiations were soon broken off by the thieves. In 1999 a supergrass, formerly in the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA), stated they stole the horse. The IRA has never admitted any role in the theft.
Shergar in 1981
Shergar on his way to winning the 1981 Epsom Derby
Shergar's owner, the Aga Khan in 2014
The sports commentator Derek Thompson, who became involved in the negotiations for Shergar
Shah Karim al-Husayni (Arabic: شاه كريم الحسيني, romanized: Shāh Karīm al-Ḥusaynī; born 13 December 1936; known as Aga Khan IV, is the 49th and current imam of Nizari Isma'ilis. He has held the position of Imam and the title of Aga Khan since 11 July, 1957, when, at the age of 20, he succeeded his grandfather, Aga Khan III. The Aga Khan claims direct lineal descent from the Islamic prophet Muhammad through Muhammad's cousin and son-in-law, Ali, who is considered an Imam by Nizari Isma'ilis, and Ali's wife Fatima, Muhammad's daughter from his first marriage. Aga Khan IV is also known by the religious title Mawlānā Hazar Imam by his Isma'ili followers.
Aga Khan in 2014
Aga Khan IV skiing for Iran at the 1964 Winter Olympics
Aga Khan IV receiving a gift of Trinitite, residue from the first nuclear bomb detonation, while visiting the Los Alamos National Laboratory in 1959.
The President, Shri Pranab Mukherjee presenting the Padma Vibhushan Award to His Highness Prince Karim Aga Khan, at a Civil Investiture Ceremony, at Rashtrapati Bhavan, in New Delhi on April 08, 2015
