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arsenic poisoning;
The 74-year-old mystery of the death of legendary Australian racehorse Phar Lap has finally been solved using breakthrough technology, a report has said.
Sydney's Daily Telegraph newspaper revealed on its front page that new scientific tests have uncovered evidence the iconic horse was poisoned with arsenic just hours before he collapsed and died in California in 1932.
The Telegraph said the revelation adds credence to the theory Phar Lap was killed on the orders of US gangsters, who feared the Melbourne Cup-winning champion would inflict big losses on their illegal bookmakers.
Phar Lap remains a mystical figure of Australian racing, winning 37 of his 51 starts including the 1930 Melbourne Cup, and was a sporting hero here during the Great Depression era.
The giant five-year-old New Zealand-bred chestnut died an agonising death in mysterious circumstances in California after winning an international race at Agua Caliente in Mexico only days before.
On the morning of Phar Lap's death, trainer Harry Telford found him in severe pain and with a high temperature. A few hours later Phar Lap passed away, blood spurting from his lungs as he haemorrhaged to death.
Sydney's Daily Telegraph newspaper revealed on its front page that new scientific tests have uncovered evidence the iconic horse was poisoned with arsenic just hours before he collapsed and died in California in 1932.
The Telegraph said the revelation adds credence to the theory Phar Lap was killed on the orders of US gangsters, who feared the Melbourne Cup-winning champion would inflict big losses on their illegal bookmakers.
Phar Lap remains a mystical figure of Australian racing, winning 37 of his 51 starts including the 1930 Melbourne Cup, and was a sporting hero here during the Great Depression era.
The giant five-year-old New Zealand-bred chestnut died an agonising death in mysterious circumstances in California after winning an international race at Agua Caliente in Mexico only days before.
On the morning of Phar Lap's death, trainer Harry Telford found him in severe pain and with a high temperature. A few hours later Phar Lap passed away, blood spurting from his lungs as he haemorrhaged to death.
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