Relkeel, the winner of three successive Bonusprint Bula Hurdles, has been retired.
The 11-year-old gelding has been plagued by leg injuries and has also had two wind operations since the 1997-98 season which made his achievements all the more meritorious.
Trained by David Nicholson, the grey son of Relkino was a leading fancy for the 1995 Champion Hurdle after winning all his five starts that season but heat in a tendon caused his 11th hour withdrawal from the Cheltenham feature.
"He was unlucky not to win the Champion Hurdle that first year he went wrong," recalled Nicholson.
Relkeel won his first Bula Hurdle in 1997 when his jockey Richard Johnson made a miraculous recovery from a last-flight blunder to beat Pridwell by three-quarters of a length.
He won the race 12 months later under Adrian Maguire on his only appearance of the season and again on his reappearance this time.
Nicholson paid tribute to his former charge.
He said: "He had a lot of injury problems but on his day he was a very, very good horse."
Described as a big, lengthy gelding Relkeel had the build to make a chaser but the now-retired Nicholson added: "He's a big horse but he was always a hurdler.
"He was one of the very best I trained and deserves a good retirement."
Alan King took over from Nicholson last December and enjoyed his first major success when Relkeel completed his hat-trick of Bula victories just eight days after the former assistant had been granted his trainer's licence.
King said: "He hadn't been showing the old sparkle and his last race at Kempton showed he'd had enough. We'll find a good home for him you can rest assured of that.
"He was my first big winner in my own right when he won the Bula Hurdle at Cheltenham earlier this season. He had terrific natural ability but was very injury prone which makes his three wins in the Bula Hurdle all the more special."
Johnson, who also partnered Relkeel to success in his third Bula, said: "He was a lovely horse and as brave as anything you could ride. It was a pleasure to be associated with him and I'm glad he's gone out at the top after winning his third Bula this season."
Owned by the Trustees of the late Brigadier Roscoe Harvey and bred by him, Relkeel, who raced for the final time at Kempton Park last Friday, ran 21 times for 12 wins, three seconds and one third and £142,308 in win and place money.
