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 *** New Zealand's all-time leading Sire of Registered Arabian foals *** 1972 Grey Purebred Arabian Stallion. A Hadban Enzahi. Bred by Tanya Hawley, Australia. Imported to New Zealand.
Pedigree of Naaddel
Click here to see a full list of Naaddel's Registered Progeny in New Zealand
Obituary - Naaddel
Viva Le Roi
Naaddel* 1972 - 2004
 by Karan Lawrence
Tanya Hawley had the right idea. When her beloved Naadirah (Aswan x Napraslina UK) had made such an obvious impact on the Arabian breed in Australia, Tanya set forth and compiled a record of her mare's achievements and paid tribute to her life's contribution in the form of a handsome book entitled "Naadirah The Arabian Dream". Some day, someone may imitate Naadirah's owner and devote themselves to the task of writing a book about one of Naadirah's own sons, Naaddel. Such has been the influence of Naaddel here in New Zealand that the undertaking of a complete chronicle of his accomplishments, especially at stud, would require a vast volume and in reality, the story has just begun. For the record, Naaddel was born on October 19, 1972, at Hawley Arabians, Dural, New South Wales, Australia. His breeder, Tanya Hawley had chosen the Indian Magic grandson Moon Fashion (Silver Moonlight x Fadoura) to cover her precious Aswan daughter as she considered his bloodlines would be complementary, in that the mating would capitalise on the shared inheritance of the Ali Pasha Sherif blood so prized by breeders worldwide. Naaddel was shown in Australia before his importation by the late Lester Marshall. His success in the Australian showring as a foal set a pattern to be continued when shown in New Zealand. In fact, he was to win many championships before being retired unbeaten. The acquisition of Naaddel in 1973 by Holly Farm represented a judicious move by Lester Marshall as it allowed an "infusion" of new blood into the mainly Silver Fire gene pool established by the stallion Silver Sparkle (imp/exp Oran x Silver Fire) as apposed to an "invasion" of new blood had he chosen a complete outcross. Some observers may claim that therein lay the secret of Naaddel's success. Still, there are so many examples of excellent progeny out of unrelated mares that one must conclude that Naaddel is a prepotent sire in his own right. If at this point some readers are experiencing a sense of déjà vu then that is because the above words were published 10 years ago. The 1995 edition of Australia's Crabbet Arabian Horse Annual contained the article entitled "Naaddel - The Story Book Stallion" and was written by myself. The following paragraphs in the article were an exercise in name-dropping as I recounted the deeds of exemplary performers such as Taralea Rasheik (x Gold Rasheiya*), Kallai (x Silver Ember), Naaim (x Silver Maid), Malik (x Rebekah), and Tutankhamen (x Sarah). These horses were only a sample of some of the Naaddel geldings competing at that time. The Naaddel stallions featured were Silver Reflection (x Silver Maid), Khali Malek (x Ezrain), Sabre (x Glowing Ember), Riblah (x Silver Lady), Ibn Naaddel (x Silver Lady), Silver Imperial (another son of Silver Lady), and Galaxy Naamishka, who is out the Nahda imp/exp mare Mashenka. Some of Naaddel's daughters were also given an honorary mention in that article as well. Mares such as Silver Anna (x Sparina), Revelation Silver (x Silver Lady), Naarina (x Sparina), Naaziri (x Silver Lady) and the exported bay mare Naatarah, a daughter of the Nahda imp/exp mare Shaaltarah. Champions all, and a mere snapshot of the females that have established Naaddel* as a sire of great worth. There are two very good reasons why it is not appropriate to simply reprint that article as a tribute to Naaddel. The most obvious reason being, that in the 10 years since publication, a great deal has been achieved by other Naaddel offspring. The words in paragraph three "and in reality, the story has just begun" were to prove prophetic. The second reason is that Naaddel deserves better. This was a stallion that was the archetypal white Arabian stallion as described in books and portrayed in paintings. He possessed beauty and masculinity in abundance. Furthermore, he was a major part of the New Zealand Arabian landscape for more than three decades. In point of fact, I have found myself struggling to write this tribute to Naaddel, not because my heart was not in it – on the contrary: the challenge has been to impress upon readers not familiar with him the true extent of his contribution to the New Zealand Arabian scene without resorting to the use of clichés, such as "sire of significance", "patriarch par excellence" and "a sire of inestimable value". On the other hand those readers familiar with Naaddel will agree that he was quite simply, a genuine Potentate. Many studs, both established and new have or have had Naaddel mares as their foundation and his sons are perpetrating his blood through their offspring and beyond. There will be few Arabian show catalogues in the last three decades that do not have evidence of Naaddel's influence. At time of writing Naaddel has sired 136 purebreds; 71 females and 65 males. I have no figures for the number of partbreds he sired, but they will be many. It is a glowing testament to the longevity of his bloodlines and the care of his guardians who ministered to his needs throughout his long life, that Naaddel remained fertile right up to the end. With more foals waiting to be registered and frozen semen in storage, the final number of foals sired may not be known for some time. His passing acts as a salutary reminder to us all that a stallion can produce "show" and "performance" horses. Naaddel sired scores of Champion and Supreme Champion horses, that competed both in hand and under saddle. Pivotal to Naaddel's right to be regarded with respect as a sire of endurance horses is the fact that, of the six horses who represented New Zealand at the 1998 World Endurance Championships in Dubai, three were Naaddel descendants. They were the aforementioned Malik exp, the partbred Minstrel who was a son of Silver Reflection, and New Zealand National Champion endurance horse Taralea Raja (x Taralea Rasheika). As a two-year-old Raja had won the NZAHBS Futurity, and it was Raja who helped New Zealand win the team Gold Medal. Seven years later New Zealand Arabian and endurance enthusiasts were to watch a web cast of the 2005 World Endurance Championships held once more in Dubai with the expectation of watching New Zealand competing again. This time the team included another Naaddel* son, another grey gelding, this one named, Traask (x Khala). His rider was David Marshall, Lester's son and together Traask and David completed the gruelling ride to finish in a praiseworthy 21st place. I know that for David it was an honour to compete for New Zealand at the championships on Traask. To complete the ride in a time of 8 hours and 55 minutes, thus recording the fastest time for a New Zealander at a world title ride, on a horse who is the living, breathing, embodiment of all that his father had envisioned those many years ago when he imported Naaddel*, was an experience of inexpressible accomplishment. For some of us who were among the legion of visitors to Holly Farm over the last 30 years, the lasting memory of Naaddel* will be of watching him being ridden bareback by David about his paddock. A couple of show-offs for sure. But the affinity they shared for each other was apparent. For now Holly Farm is without its King and although there appear to be pretenders to the throne grazing the paddocks, they will have to achieve great things, as will their offspring, in order to uplift the title. Until such a time it is "fare thee well" to Naaddel* and "Viva Le Roi". (Long Live the King).
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 The beautiful Naaddel daughter ex HFA Kazrianna (by Kandahar Ibn Kazra) |
Naaddel’s success is no surprise to his owner, David Marshall of Holly Farm Arabian Bloodstock. “Naaddel is a very hardy horse, still up on his toes, and serving mares at the age of 27 years of age. Genetically his toughness has come through.”
Naaddel is a grey horse by the Silver Moonlight son Moon Fashion, out of Tanya Hawley’s famous mare Naadirah. At the time Naadirah was the only filly in England by Aswan (Nazeer). However, she also carried the blood of the world-famous Naseem (Skowronek X Nasra), as her dam Napraslina (USSR) was by Naseem’s son Nomer. In short Naadirah represented a Nazeer/Naseem cross.
This cross has been duplicated in the Holly Farm stock through Saracen Karim (linebred to Nazeer) and Silver Sparkle (out of Nassem’s daughter, Silver Fire). Naaddel’s grandsire, Silver Moonlight, is a half brother to Silver Sparkle, and very linebred to Naseem’s dam Nasra.
The original Holly Farm Arabians were chosen by David’s father, Lester, a “pioneer” in New Zealand Arabian horse breeding. It was by sheer coinccidence that the type of Arabian he favoured, has in modern times proved to be the best type for the gruelling task of Endurance Racing.
David explains,”I have learned that Arabian type is synonymous with endurance performance. The Arabian is basically an incredibly, efficient equine cooling system on legs! Every distinguishing feature of an Arabian horse is geared to disperse heat. The flaring nostrils and their high head carriage draws in huge amounts of oxygen; the fine skin, abundant veins and fat-free muscles allow the blood to cool as it fires around the body; the gaily carried tail allows air to fan through the back legs as the horse moves, and the feather-light paces would delight any student of ergonomics
After centuries of human selection, the Arabian emerged as a fiery, inexhaustable, desert warhorse. It was agile enough to engage in fierce combat, yet strong enough to carry a fully-grown man, at high speed over merciless terrain in strength-sapping climates. Such tasks demanded a special “type” of horse.
Silver Fire (Nassem X Somra by Daoud) was one mare who possessed such type, and Holly Farm founded on her genes. With the choice of a mere handful of Arabians available at the time, Lester Marshall landed none less than a direct son of this fabulous mare. Silver Sparkle (Oran X Silver Fire), born in 1947, launched a fleet of show champions for Lester, and before long his offspring were stamping the endurance trails as well. For David it is of the greatest luck, that Silver Sparkle was the foundation Stallion to grace the pastures of Holly Farm.
Silver Fire is by Nasra’s world-famous son Naseem (by Skowronek). She is doubly bred to the stallion Daoud, who is Nasra’s sire. Worldwide Silver Fire’s family has gathered strength through linebreeding to Nasra, Nasra’s dam Nefisa and Daoud. Lester Marshall obviously had an inkling of this trend when choosing Naaddel to cross with his Silver Sparkle daughters and granddaughters.
Silver Fire’s most successful progenitor of show stock, her daughter Silver Gilt, has almost identical linebreeding to Holly Farm’s endurance foundation. This tends to confirm David’s observation that “Good endurance type is good Arabian type”.
Confirmation is easy to “fix” by doubling up sire’s in a pedigree, and this is the most common way of linebreeding. It is also the easiest way to linebreed because stallion lines are obviously more prolific than mare lines. However, in performance, the most effective and reliable results are undoubtedly achieved through linebreeding to mare lines. That is because mare lines carry many of the unseen factors required for performance. Recently it has been discovered that heart size is carried by a gene on the X chromosome, and can only be passed on from mare to daughter or mare to son and then back to daughter. It cannot reliably be passed on from son to son.
Readers of the Thoroughbred book, “X Factor” will understand the immence genetic power in what Holly Farm has set out to achieve. Naaddel’s son Taralea Raja, a NZ World Gold Medal winner in Dubai. His maternal grandam-sire, Gold Rex, features intense linebreeding to Nasra-Nefisa. Gold Rex’s dam, Gleaming Gold is triple linebred and also carries Naseem in the same generation through her grandsire Irex. This intesity to Nasra-Nefisa was perfectly placed to pick up the genes in Naaddel. For Naaddel is a grandson of the similarly bred, and highly successful Silver Moonlight ( Indian Magic X Silver Fire). Just highlight the extended pedigree of these horses and it becomes imminently obvious this intensifies their contribution.
This was a pedigree match that could hardly fail. World Gold Team member!
Every inbreeding pattern requires a catalyst. David believes that the supersire, Nazeer is the perfect catalyst for Silver Fire-Nasra blood. His father, Lester, intensified the introduction of Nazeer to Silver Sparkle mares through Saracen Karim, who carries 43.5% Nazeer blood through linebreeding. David is so taken with the results that he has carefully continued this cross, adding stallions of Egyptian-Nazeer-sirelines. Such as Kandahar Ibn Kazra, Simeon Sadir and now Simeon Sapar. Naaddel, as previously stated, also has a line to Nazeer.
Naaddel, now clearly stated, is a perfect cross for the mares carrying Silver Sparkle. The second of Naaddel’s NZ team members was Malik, a grandson of the intense inbred Golden Ember. Bred to Nazeer outcross, Saracen Karim produced Rebekah, the dam of Malik. Rebekah is a full sister to El-Zad-Karim a National Champion Endurance Horse and among only three horses to be honoured on the Roll of Merit list. So the repeat patterns of Nazeer/Naseem/Silver Fire/Nasra are proving successful.
The third team member Minstral, of Naaddel blood is a non-purebred son of the Holly Farm bred Silver Reflection (Naaddel X Silver Lady). Silver Reflection is a less complicated cross of Silver Fire, Nasra and Nazeer. Silver Reflection, himself the most winning NZ National Championship winner (11) also sired the National Endurance Champion Ambrose.
So, the Holly Farm programs success is clearly based on an ever-repeating pattern of linebreeding to Silver Fire-Nasra-Nefisa, outcrossed to Nazeer. What started by chance, David is now careful to cultivate. To this end he has just pounced upon the opportunity to lease the triple Naseem, grandaughter of Aswan (Nazeer) G.G. Sasha a Straight Russian mare. She has been bred to Naaddel’s half-brother Naazim (Mustafa X Naadirah). This exciting match repeats the above pedigree patterns, which will be even further strengthened by a double cross of Aswan the top racing sire of Russia and Naseem’s superb Russian grandson Salon.
Now that the World’s eyes are focused on Arabians for International Endurance riding, it is comforting to know that New Zealand breeders are able to reap the benefit of some of the most precious bloodlines in the world today. David Marshall is acutely aware of his role in maintaining the strength of these bloodlines.
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