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Trainer Nicky Henderson has revealed that his one-time stable star Altior is now fighting for his life in hospital, where his condition is reported as 'stable but critical' following a severe bout of colic.
A true jump-racing great, Altior won 19 races in a row for Henderson, and was a dual winner of the Queen Mother Champion Chase at Cheltenham in 2018 and 2019, on his way to becoming the highest-rated horse in training, with a peak mark of 175.
He was retired at the age of 11 in 2021, signing off after winning 21 of his 26 career starts, including 10 Grade One races and four victories at the Cheltenham Festival.
Altior has since spent his retirement with former jockey Mick Fitzgerald, but Henderson has revealed that things are now in the balance for the National Hunt legend.
"Unfortunately we have a problem with Altior after it was discovered on Saturday morning that he was suffering from a severe bout of colic," the Seven Barrows handler said in his Unibet blog.
"As a consequence, he was taken to the equine hospital very, very quickly where he had to undergo a four-hour operation to remove a considerable amount of his intestine. It was a big operation and not straightforward
"On Sunday morning, he was still extremely uncomfortable so had to undergo further surgery due to complications. There is some reasonably positive news in the fact that this morning he is stable, but still critical.
"Pat Pugh (owner) has been to see him on several occasions and he is currently in extremely good hands with all of the team at Donnington Valley. It's a terrible shame because he deserves a long and happy retirement and was really enjoying life at Chloe and Mick Fitzgerald's.
"It's been extremely tough, and no horse deserves this, especially dear Altior who gave so much pleasure to everyone on the track.
"In an ironic twist, we welcomed his gorgeous four-year-old old brother to Seven Barrows last week. He is the most handsome son of Camelot and is really pleasing us all.
"We are all praying and doing everything humanely possible to ensure he can pull through and continue living life as he should."
