Elfriede Stronach, Frieda to the Thoroughbred community, passed away in Canada on March 25 at the age of 80, according to a report in the Austrian news outlet Kleine Zeitung.
As one of the first ladies of Canadian horse racing as owner of Stronach Stables and Adena Springs with her husband, billionaire Frank Stronach, the news came as a shock to the racing world.
Born Elfriede Sallmutter in Weiz, Styria, she met her husband-to-be on a skiing trip and they have been together for 60 years. The couple have two children, Andrew and Belinda, and three grandchildren. Frieda was very much involved in her husband’s love for horse racing, which included hundreds of mares producing stakes winners all over the world from farms in Aurora, ON, Lexington, KY and Ocala, FL.