Prince Ahmed bin Salman, owner of War Emblem, dead at 44

JIDDAH, Saudi Arabia (AP) -- Prince Ahmed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, owner of Kentucky Derby winner War Emblem and 2001 horse of the year Point Given, died Monday of a heart attack at age 43.

Ahmed, a nephew of King Fahd of Saudi Arabia and also chairman of a publishing empire, died in the capital of Riyadh.

"I'm in shock," Bob Baffert, who trained War Emblem and Point Given for Salman, told the industry publication The Blood Horse. "When you go through a Triple Crown together you get really close. He was like family. His passion for horses was incredible -- he lived and breathed them."

With the victory of War Emblem in May, Ahmed became the first Arab owner to win the Kentucky Derby. War Emblem also won the Preakness before stumbling in the Belmont and finishing eighth, failing to become the first Triple Crown winner since Affirmed in 1978.

The U.S.-educated Ahmed spent $900,000 to buy War Emblem just three weeks before the Kentucky Derby, after the horse won the Illinois Derby.

"I think this is one of the best investments I ever made in my life, besides buying oil in Arabia," Ahmed said on May 18 after winning the Preakness.

Point Given, though, was perhaps his finest horse, winning the 2001 Preakness and Belmont and being named horse of the year. Point Given had finished fifth in the Kentucky Derby.

He also owned Spain, horse racing's all-time female money-winner.

"I'm shocked and saddened," said jockey Gary Stevens, who rode Point Given to victories in the Preakness and Belmont stakes in 2001, which were The Thoroughbred Corp.'s first Triple Crown wins. "We were very close friends outside of racing. He was a guy who loved to laugh and loved a good time."

Stevens said the prince's death would have a major impact on the sport.

"He had major flair and loved the game and was continuing to grow in the sport," he said. "At 43, everybody was looking forward to him having a long, long career in the industry and he was definitely a boost to thoroughbred racing."

Ahmed's father, Prince Salman, is the powerful governor of Riyadh who turned the city into a modern, high-tech metropolis that boasts some of the ritziest malls in the Middle East.

Unlike his father, Ahmed did not seek a government post. After pursuing military studies, and later social studies in California, the prince became a businessman. In the late 1980s, he became chairman of the board of a publishing company, the Saudi Research and Marketing Group.

He helped turn the business that put out three publications and was worth $90 million into a company that boasts a capital of $160 million and total assets in excess of $533 million. It now owns 17 publications, including the respected London-based Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper and the English-language daily Arab News.

"On a personal level he was the kindest person I've ever seen -- he was a prince without the airs," said Khalid Al-Maeena, editor-in-chief of the Arab News.

The prince did not generate political news at home, but stories of his racetrack success often were splashed across the sports pages of Saudi dailies.

Ahmed, a large man with a trim black mustache, has been in love with horses since he was a child.

A recreational rider, he often would visit sales in Europe and North America and closely follow the details of his stables, including selection of broodmares and stallions.

The prince also was known for his sense of humor, which he displayed in Miami in February. While thanking American racing organizations for voting Point Given as horse of the year, he also expressed gratitude for his wife's patience, adding: "And by the way, she is my only wife."

Ahmed was known as a hands-on decision maker in the publishing company. He also founded a multimillion-dollar cooking oil company, Nabati, in Dammam, in the kingdom's eastern province.

He also was publisher of the equestrian magazine Fursiah.

Last year, Prince Ahmed's elder brother, Prince Fahd, died of a heart attack. Ahmed is survived by a wife and five children.