The death of the Aga Khan has evoked memories of one of the greatest sporting mysteries of all time – the disappearance of the wonder horse Shergar.

The champion racehorse, owned by the Aga Khan, was stolen in Ireland 42 years ago today.

The billionaire spiritual leader had strong racing connections with Ireland, and he also owned the Ballymany Stud in County Kildare.

That’s where Shergar was homed, when an armed gang of kidnappers broke into the farm and seized the horse under the cover of darkness on the 8 February 1983.

It was an audacious kidnapping and it made headlines around the world at the time.

Shergar had won the 1981 Derby by a record 10 lengths and followed that triumph with successes in the Irish Derby and the King George.

The colt had earned the right to be regarded as one of the all-time greats.

When Shergar retired at the end of that season, racehorse owners paid £10m for shares in his services impregnating mares.

But the dream of prestigious offspring was shattered a year later when the gang, armed with guns, kidnapped Shergar.

Suspicion fell on the IRA at the height of the Troubles but no one or any organisation has ever admitted kidnapping or killing the superstar colt.

No trace of the horse has ever been found and the mystery has endured.

Retired Irish jockey, Fran Berry, has told BBC News NI grew up in County Kildare and was born in 1981, when Shergar posted the remarkable Derby sucess.

“He (Shergar) was syndicated for a world record price at the time to stand at stud in County Kildare where one would have expected, given his ability on the racetrack, that he may well develop into a top stallion,” he said.

“Sadly, we never got to learn that due to the fact he was kidnapped.”

Berry also paid tribute to the Aga Khan and his contribution to racing in Ireland and around the world.

“As regards horse racing and the way he developed and nurtured a breed over many years and the success that it brought and the quality that it brought, he’s left a legacy that will continue for a long time,” he said.

The Aga Khan was a big supporter of Irish racing and in 2019 the then Taoiseach (Irish Prime Minister) Leo Varadkar accompanied him at the unveiling of a new Aga Khan Stand at the Curragh racecourse in County Kildare.

But his interest in horses wasn’t limited to racing.

He was also a longstanding supporter of Showjumping in Ireland.

The Aga Khan Trophy, donated by the Aga Khan’s father in 1926, is a central part of the annual Dublin Horse Show at the Royal Dublin Society (RDS).

In fact, the trophy has been embedded in the Irish sporting consciousness ever since the nation’s showjumping team of Eddie Macken, Paul Darragh, Captain Con Power and James Kernan won a dramatic and historic three-in-a-row between 1977 and 1979.

Shergar and Showjumping are part of the Aga Khan’s legacy in Ireland.