She went beyond racing to become a household name in Australia, temporarily reviving a sport that had been in decline. At the height of her career, she graced the cover of Vogue, met Queen Elizabeth II and had her own line of shampoo and conditioner.

Black Caviar, the Australian racehorse who became a cultural icon with her unbeaten streak of 25 wins from 2009 to 2013, died on Saturday, one day before her 18th birthday.

Her death was confirmed in a statement from the Victoria Racing Club. Australian news media reported that her trainer, Peter Moody, said Black Caviar was euthanized after giving birth to a foal because she was suffering from laminitis, a painful condition of horses’ hooves. Mr Moody could not immediately be reached for confirmation.

Between 2009 and 2013, Black Caviar won 25 races from 25 starts, earning more than $5.3 million (about $8 million Australian dollars) in prize money. From 2010 to 2013, she was ranked as the best sprinter racehorse in the world by the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities, with some media outlets calling her “the most popular racehorse in the world.”

“It’s very rare that someone experiences something that goes beyond sport,” Australian racing commentator Matt Hill told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation on Sunday, “but everyone, even if they weren’t interested in horse racing, knew who Black Caviar was.”

At times, Black Caviar’s fame even went beyond her equine nature. In 2012, she was named a newspaper’s “Sportswoman of the Year,” controversially beating out human Olympic hurdler Sally Pearson. That same year, Black Caviar became the first animal to appear on the cover of Australian Vogue.

“The stately brown mare is not our everyday cover girl, and yet she is undeniably beautiful,” the magazine said at the time.

One of Black Caviar’s most dramatic victories came at the 2012 Royal Ascot in England, where the local press dubbed her the “Miracle from Down Under.” Her jockey, Luke Nolen, had lost momentum just before the finish line and another horse threatened to steal the win from Black Caviar. But she prevailed and after the race Queen Elizabeth II patted her on the nose.

At the height of her fame, Black Caviar sparked such a buzz in Australia that events that had previously seen declining attendances were selling out, racing experts said.

At the races, spectators waved flags in their colors: salmon pink with black dots. Some wore ties with this pattern – sold through the official Black Caviar shop, where the collection of horse shampoo and conditioner was also available.

“She makes people feel good and one day the old hands will surely boast that they saw her racing,” said Wayne Peake, an Australian racing historian, in 2012.

Of a horse race in Adelaide that year, he said: “One gets the feeling that the visit to Black Caviar was the equivalent for horses of the Queen on a royal tour, visiting her subjects in the farthest corners of her realm.”

In 2013, Mr Moody said Black Caviar would be retired and put into breeding. “She did everything we asked of her; there was no way she could have done more,” he said at the time.

The withdrawal made headlines. Julia Gillard, then-Prime Minister of Australia, said on social media: “We have never seen anything like black caviar before and we may never see it again.”

According to racing.com, Black Caviar was scheduled to have a total of nine foals, including Prince of Caviar, Out Of Caviar, Ready For Caviar and Invincible Caviar.

When she retired, journalist and racing commentator Gerard Whateley, who wrote a biography of the horse, said: “She meant everything to Australian racing,” an industry in decline, and she “reminded everyone that there is a great predisposition in this country to love racehorses.”

“She seemed to convey an emotional commitment to everyone with her candidacy,” he added.