Diamond
Diamond is a Allotropes of carbon, solid form of the element carbon with its atoms arranged in a crystal structure called diamond cubic. Diamond is tasteless, odourless, strong, brittle solid, colourless in pure form, a poor conductor of e ...
Mare
A mare is an adult female horse or other equidae, equine. In most cases, a mare is a female horse over the age of three, and a filly is a female horse three and younger. In Thoroughbred horse racing, a mare is defined as a female horse more th ...
, foaled = 2001
, country = United States
, colour =
Dark Brown Dark Brown may refer to:
* Dark brown
* Dark Brown (1957 film), an Australian television film
* Dark Brown (1963 film), another version of the above
{{dab ...
, breeder = Stephen E. Quick Christopher J. Feifarek
, owner = Stephen E. Quick & Christopher J. Feifarek
, trainer = Chris Grove
, record = 36: 16-7-3
, earnings = $1,032,973
, race =
Maryland Million Oaks
Maryland Million Oaks was an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually from 1986 thru 2012 primarily at Laurel Park Racecourse in Laurel, Maryland or at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore. To be eligible for the Maryland Million Oaks, a horse ha ...
(2004)
Geisha Handicap
Geisha Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually in April since 1973 primarily at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore or at Laurel Park Racecourse in Laurel. To be eligible for the Geisha Handicap, a horse must be bred in Maryland. D ...
(2004)
Jameela Stakes
The Jameela Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually in August at Laurel Park Racecourse in Laurel, Maryland. It is open to fillies and mare three years old and up and is raced on turf. For 2016, the distance is 6 furlongs.
The ...
Conniver Stakes
The Conniver Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually in March at Laurel Park Racecourse in Laurel, Maryland. It is open to fillies and mares three years old and up and is run at seven furlongs on the dirt. An ungraded stakes ...
(2007)
, awards=
, honours =
, updated=
Silmaril (foaled March 31, 2001 in
Maryland
Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...
) is an American
thoroughbred
The Thoroughbred is a list of horse breeds, horse breed developed for Thoroughbred racing, horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thorough ...
mare
A mare is an adult female horse or other equidae, equine. In most cases, a mare is a female horse over the age of three, and a filly is a female horse three and younger. In Thoroughbred horse racing, a mare is defined as a female horse more th ...
racehorse
Horse racing is an equestrian performance activity, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its bas ...
. She is sired by stakes winner, Diamond, who in turn was sired by leading North American sire, Mr. Prospector. She was out of the mare, Kattebuck, whose sire was the 1985 United States Horse of the Year, Spend A Buck.
Silmaril raced a total of 36 times, mostly in Maryland. She won 16 races, 11 of them stakes races. Silmaril is probably best known for defeating the Eclipse award winning filly,
Ashado
Ashado (foaled February 4, 2001 in Kentucky) is an American Thoroughbred racemare whose seven Grade I wins included the 2004 Breeders' Cup Distaff. She won Eclipse Awards as the Champion Three-Year-Old Filly of 2004 and Champion Older Female of 2 ...
twice, once in the grade two Pimlico Breeders' Cup Distaff Handicap (now called Allaire duPont Distaff Stakes) in 2005 and in the What A Summer Stakes in 2007. Ashado went on to become North America's second leading mare in career earnings with almost $4,000,000.
Silmaril was also a very popular mare at
Laurel Park Racecourse
Laurel Park, formerly Laurel Race Course, is an American thoroughbred racetrack located just outside Laurel, Maryland which opened in 1911. The track is miles in circumference. Its name was changed to "Laurel Race Course" for several decades un ...
and throughout Maryland. She won two different races on
Maryland Million Day
Jim McKay Maryland Million Day is an annual day of stakes races thoroughbred horse races operated by Maryland Million Limited, a company formed in 1985.
The Maryland Million is a one-day stakes program offering purses totaling $1 million, restri ...
, both the Maryland Million Oaks in 2004 as a three-year-old and the Maryland Million Distaff Handicap in 2006 as a five-year-old.
Named for the "great jewels" of the
J.R.R. Tolkien
John Ronald Reuel Tolkien (, 3 January 1892 – 2 September 1973) was an English writer and philologist. He was the author of the high fantasy works ''The Hobbit'' and ''The Lord of the Rings''.
From 1925 to 1945, Tolkien was the Rawlinson ...
tales, Silmaril is one of only five Maryland-bred mares to ever reach the million dollar mark in total earnings on the racetrack. She was retired back to her owners' breeding facilities in Maryland on January 12, 2008.