MIDWAY, Ky. -- Silver Charm, who barely missed winning the Triple Crown in 1997, was sold to the Japan Racing Association and will stand at stud in that country next year.

Silver Charm, a 10-year-old son of Silver Buck, has stood at Three Chimneys since his retirement in 1999.

The sale was announced by Three Chimneys Farm owner Robert Clay, who manages a syndicate that includes Bob Lewis, who has a 75 percent share in the horse. The sale price was not disclosed.

"We received an offer that, at my stage in life, I could not turn down," Lewis said in a statement released by the farm. "The contract gives us the right of first refusal to purchase him if he is ever sold, so that we can ensure his well-being, and provides that he may return to Three Chimneys Farm upon his retirement."

Concern about the well-being of thoroughbreds in Japan was raised last year when reports surfaced that 1986 Kentucky Derby winner Ferdinand was killed at a slaughterhouse two years ago. The horse had stood in Japan since 1994.

Silver Charm, trained by Bob Baffert, edged Captain Bodgit by a head to win the 1997 Kentucky Derby, then beat Free House by a neck in the Preakness Stakes. But in the 1{-mile Belmont Stakes, Silver Charm lost by ¾ of a length to Touch Gold.

Silver Charm went on to win the Dubai World Cup in 1998 as a 4-year-old and retired with earnings of $6,944,369, sixth on the list of all-time leading money winners in North America.

Preachinatthebar, a Grade II stakes winner this year, and Consecrate are the most prominent horses sired by Silver Charm.