WOODMAN, sire of over 100 stakes winners including the outstanding Hawk Wing, was put down at Ashford Stud, Kentucky, on Thursday night. The 24-year-old had been suffering from the infirmities of old age.

A son of Mr Prospector, Woodman had over 40 mares scanned in foal to him this season, having stood for $20,000, a fee he had commanded for the last three years.

Ashford`s manager Dermot Ryan commented: "Woodman is one of a very select group of stallions to have sired over 100 stakes winners and has been a terrific servant to his shareholders and toAshfird Stud. He will be sadly missed."

While the multiple Group 1 winner Hawk Wing can lay claim to being his sire`s best performer of recent years, Woodman was the sire of seven champions in the northern hemisphere from his 109 stakes winners from 19 crops.

These include the great mare Bosra Sham (pictured), the 1995 Preakness Stakes winner Timber Country, the outstanding juvenile Hector Protector, and Hansel, winner of both the Preakness and Belmont Stakes in 1991, as well as champions in Japan, France, and Canada.

Sons of Woodman have enjoyed some success at stud and the freshman sire Hawk Wing looks certain to carry on his sire`s legacy. On Wednesday night, the day prior to Woodman`s death, Hawk Wing was represented by his first stakes winner when Triskel landed the Listed Silver Flash Stakes at Leopardstown. Hawk Wing is the sire of eight winners to date from his first crop.

In addition to his successes as a sire, Woodman has also proved a high-class broodmare sire, having matched histally of stakes winners with an identical number from his daughters. Among these are the Group/Grade 1 winners More Than Ready, Carry On Katie, Mamool, Ticker Tape, Snow Ridge, Sutra, and the Australian champion Miss Finland.

Woodman made an immediate impact at stud when he retired to Ashford for the 1987 season. His first crop of 45 named foals yielded four stakes winners, most notably Hector Protector who was unbeaten in six starts, including three Group 1s, and went on to win the Poule d`Essai des Poulains the following season.

That first crop also produced Mujtahid, winner of the Group 2 Gimcrack Stakes, while in the US Hansel landed the Grade 2 Arlington-Washington Futurity. Those colts helped their sire to the title of leadingfreshman sire and leading sire of juveniles in 1990.

Such successes ensured Woodman large books each season, and the stallion`s fee rose to a high of $100,000 in 1991, following his outstanding results from his first runners. In addition to his northern hemisphere stud duties, the stallion was also a regular on the shuttle roster, standing on season in Brazil and making the trip to Australia for several years. He is the sire of the winners of over 420 races to date in Australia and New Zealand.

Bred by Warner L. Jones jnr and Edward A. Cox jnr in Kentucky out of the Buckpasser mare Playmate, Woodman was offered as a yearling at the 1984 Keeneland July sale where he was purchased by the BBA for $3m on behalf of Robert Sangster.

Put in trainingwith Vincent O`Brien, Woodman quickly proved himself a smart performer, although he never hit the heights that his yearling price tag might have led connections to envisage.

After landing a maiden over 6f at the Curragh the chestnut colt returned to the same track to take the Group 3 Anglesey Stakes and was back again in September to land the Group 3 Futurity Stakes after an air traffic dispute prevented him from travelling to Longchamp to contest the Prix de la Salamandre.

He rounded out his season with a disappointing fifth, albeit beaten only two and a half lengths, in the Group 1 Dewhurst Stakes, but had still done enough to be named Ireland`s champion juvenile. He raced only once at three, finishing third in the6f Mill Ridge Stakes, before embarking on his long stud career.

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