Peter Vela

Sir Peter James Vela (born ) is a New Zealand businessman and Thoroughbred breeder and owner. With his brother Philip he founded Vela Fishing and Pencarrow Stud. He is most notably associated with the mare Ethereal, winner of the 2001 Melbourne Cup.

Biography Vela was born in about 1949, the son of Filip Vela, who had come to New Zealand from the Croatian village of Pogdora in the 1920s. With his brother, Philip, Peter Vela founded a commercial fishing company in the 1970s. Vela Fishing grew to become one of the largest privately owned fishing companies in New Zealand. The company was the first to export New Zealand fillet products to the United Kingdom, and the first to export sea-frozen hoki fillets to the United States. Among the horses bred by Pencarrow and sold as yearlings was Darci Brahma, which went on to win five group 1 races.

In the 2002 Queen's Birthday and Golden Jubilee Honours, Peter Vela was appointed an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit, for services to horse racing and the bloodstock industry. In the 2014 New Year Honours, he was promoted to Knight Companion of the same order, for services to the Thoroughbred industry.

Vela was inducted into the New Zealand Racing Hall of Fame in May 2021.