Aga Khan: Billionaire and spiritual leader dies at 88

Of Shergar's triumph, he said: "It's a memory that can never, never go away.

"I've seen that film I don't know, tens or hundreds of times. I keep trying to analyse where this remarkable performance came from. Every time I see the film, I feel that I have learned something.

"If you're in racing, the Epsom Derby is one of the greats. It always has been, so to win a race of that quality in itself is an extraordinary privilege. To win it the way he won it was more than that.

"I had watched quite enough races to be able to determine what the jockey was feeling, how the horse was going at the time and when he came around Tattenham Corner, I couldn't believe my eyes, frankly.

"His victory up to this point in time was unique. Two things I found stunning - one was the ease with which that horse moved and second was the fact that during the finishing straight he just kept going away, going away, going away. That was really remarkable."

The Aga Khan went on to win the big race another four times with Shahrastani (1986), Kahyasi (1988), Sinndar (2000) and Harzand (2016).

Other notable successes included the 2008 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe with the brilliant unbeaten filly Zarkava.