FRANCE: A Horse Opera

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An American vs. the Aga Khan

When he assumed spiritual leadership of the 20-million-member Ismaili sect 22 years ago, the Aga Khan was asked whether he intended to maintain his grandfather's famous racing stables. "I'm not much for sport," replied the prince, then 20. "I don't know what I'll do with the horses." Quickly enough the young heir developed a passionate interest in what he described as "a game of chess with nature"—the breeding of horses —and today he reigns supreme over the French horse-racing establishment. His sport has led him into a bitter dispute over a multimillion-dollar string of Thoroughbreds.

The Aga Khan's antagonist is Wayne Murty, 42, a leading U.S. horse trader and bloodstock agent from Lexington, Ky., and the clash concerns the racing stable of French Textile Tycoon Marcel Boussac, who went bankrupt a year ago. Among Boussac's 200 or so Thoroughbred horses are some of the most sought-after broodmares in the business.

Seven days before Boussac declared personal bankruptcy, Murty made a deal to buy 56 of his horses. The price: $840,000, a bargain-basement figure for Thoroughbreds whose breeding potential alone is worth millions of dollars. Two days after his purchase Murty was approached by a French bloodstock agent, Victor Thomas, who often acts for the Aga Khan. Perhaps hoping he could strike a deal with the prince, Thomas asked the American if he would resell the horses for a commission. Murty says that when he refused, Thomas threatened to have the sale killed, he pointed out that he had friends in the French government and in France's Jockey Club who would make certain that Murty's horses never left the country.

Sure enough, when Murty tried to move his stock out of France, the shipment was blocked by Jean Romanet, head of the Jockey Club, and by Henri Blanc, of the state-owned National Stud. For reasons still murky, they refused to sign export licenses, claiming that they were acting under orders from the Agriculture Ministry. But ministry officials denied any knowledge of the affair, says Murty. At about this time the National Stud received a donation from the Aga Khan of three stallions, worth at least $90,000. Says Murty: "I believe the Aga Khan gave the stallions as a favor to the National Stud for stopping my horses from leaving the country." Replies the Aga Khan: "I didn't need the horses. They didn't square with my breeding program. Better to donate them than to shoot them."

Moving behind the scenes, the Aga Khan had made a separate bid of $9.3 million to Boussac's receivers for 144 of the stable's horses, as well as $1.3 million for the Murty stock. Arguing that it was in the interest of Boussac's creditors to see the equine assets sold to the highest bidder, a bankruptcy court in Paris overturned the Murty deal, ordered the American to hand back his 56 horses to the receivers and told him to wait with other creditors for the return of his money.