The syndication deal for Secretariat precluded the horse racing past age three. Accordingly, Secretariat's last race was against older horses in the Canadian International Stakes over one and five-eighths miles on the turf at Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto, Ontario, Canada on October 28, 1973. The race was chosen in part because of long-time ties between E.P. Taylor and the Chenery family, and partly to honor Secretariat's Canadian connections, Laurin and Turcotte. Turcotte missed the race with a five-day suspension: Eddie Maple got the mount. The day of the race was cold, windy and wet, but the Marshall turf course was firm.
Canadian International Stakes
Secretariat (horse)
Secretariat (horse) | Canadian International Stakes
Canadian International Stakes . Kentucky Derby Canadian International Stakes Canadian International Stakes
how many lengths did secretariat win the belmont stakes
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31 lengths.
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who was "secretariat"?
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An American Thoroughbred racehorse.
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who owned this horse?
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Penny Chenery.
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how many years did it's career is racing last?
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From 1972 to 1973.
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which was the last race the horse competed in?
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The syndication deal for Secretariat precluded the horse racing past age three. Accordingly, Secretariat's last race was against older horses in the Canadian International Stakes over one and five-eighths miles on the turf at Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto, Ontario, Canada on October 28, 1973. The race was chosen in part because of long-time ties between E.P. Taylor and the Chenery family, and partly to honor Secretariat's Canadian connections, Laurin and Turcotte. Turcotte missed the race with a five-day suspension: Eddie Maple got the mount. The day of the race was cold, windy and wet, but the Marshall turf course was firm.
Secretariat (horse) | Canadian International Stakes
After the race, Secretariat was brought to Aqueduct Racetrack where he was paraded with Turcotte dressed in the Meadow silks before a crowd of 32,990 in his final public appearance. "It's a sad day, and yet it's a great day," said Laurin. "I certainly wish he could run as a 4-year-old. He's a great horse and he loves to run."
Secretariat (horse) | Canadian International Stakes
For example, Secretariat was nominated in 2013 in recognition of his appearance in the 1973 Canadian International, an appearance that brought worldwide attention to the race.
Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame | Background
Despite the weather, some 35,000 people turned out to greet Secretariat in a "virtual hysteria.” His biggest opponents were Kennedy Road, whom he had beaten in the Marlboro Cup, and Big Spruce, who had finished third in the Man o' War. Kennedy Road went to the early lead, while Secretariat moved to second after breaking from an outside post. On the backstretch, Secretariat made his move and forged to the lead. "Snorting steam in the raw twilight", he rounded the far turn with a 12-length lead before gearing down in the final furlong, ultimately winning by lengths. Once again, many winning tickets went uncashed by souvenir hunters.
Secretariat (horse) | Canadian International Stakes
The most famous horse from Canada is generally considered to be Northern Dancer, who after winning the Kentucky Derby, Preakness and Queen's Plate in 1964 went on to become the most successful Thoroughbred sire of the twentieth century; his two-minute-flat Derby was the fastest on record until Secretariat in 1973. The only challenger to his title of greatest Canadian horse would be his son Nijinsky II, who is the last horse to win the English Triple Crown. Woodbine Racetrack (1956) in Toronto is home of the Queen's Plate (1860), Canada's premier Thoroughbred stakes race, and the North America Cup (1984), Canada's premier Standardbred stakes race.
Horse racing | Canada
Canadian Bound, however, was a complete failure in racing, and for several years, the value of Secretariat's offspring declined considerably, especially given the rising popularity of Northern Dancer's offspring in the sales ring. Secretariat eventually sired a number of major stakes winners, including:
Secretariat (horse) | Stud career
Secretariat wintered in Florida but did not race until March 17, 1973 in the Bay Shore Stakes at Aqueduct, where he went off as the heavy favorite. As the trainer of one of his opponents put it, "The only chance we have is if he falls down." Racing boxed in by horses on each side, Turcotte decided to go through a narrow gap between horses rather than try to circle the field. Secretariat broke free and won easily, but one of the other jockeys claimed that Secretariat had committed a foul going through the hole. The stewards reviewed photos from the race and determined that Secretariat was actually on the receiving end of a bump, so let the result stand.
Secretariat (horse) | 1973: Three-year-old season
Valenzuela produced him with a strong late run on the outside to win by half a length from Talloires. In September he contested the Grade I Canadian International Stakes at Woodbine Racecourse in Toronto but endured a "rough trip" and finished fifth of the seven runners behind Singspiel. Dernier Empereur' last race was the Grade II Carleton F. Burke Handicap over one and a half miles at Santa Anita Park on 4 November. Ridden by Chris McCarron, he took the lead in the straight and won by three lengths from Bon Point. Dernier Empereur was being prepared for a run in the Japan Cup when he fractured his left front cannon bone in a training gallop at Hollywood Park.
Dernier Empereur | 1996: six-year-old season
When Secretariat first retired to Claiborne Farm, his sperm showed some signs of immaturity, so he was bred to three non-Thoroughbred mares in December 1973 to test his fertility. One of these, an Appaloosa named Leola, produced Secretariat's first foal in November 1974. Named First Secretary, the foal was a chestnut like his sire, but spotted like his dam. Secretariat's first official foal crop, arriving in 1975, consisted of 28 foals, the best of which was Dactylographer, who won the William Hill Futurity in October 1977. The first crop also included Canadian Bound, who at the 1976 Keeneland July sale was the first yearling to break the $1 million barrier, selling for $1.5 million.
Secretariat (horse) | Stud career
His final preparatory race for the Kentucky Derby was the Wood Memorial, where he finished a surprising third to Angle Light and Santa Anita Derby winner Sham. Laurin was crushed, even though he had trained the winner, Angle Light, who set a slow pace and "stole" the race. Secretariat's loss was later attributed to a large abscess in his mouth, which made him sensitive to the bit. Before and after the race, there was some ill feeling between Laurin and the trainer of Sham, Pancho Martin, fanned by comments in the press. The dispute concerned the use of coupled entries as Martin had entered two horses in addition to Sham, all with the same owner.
Secretariat (horse) | 1973: Three-year-old season
His jockey Don MacBeth said the colt felt sound, but Tammaro subsequently withdrew him from the Flamingo. Deputy Minister would not return to racing until October 28 when he won an allowance race at Woodbine. He finished the year with a seventh place finish in the Sports Page Handicap at Aqueduct on November 21.
Deputy Minister (horse) | 1982: Three-year-old campaign
In the 1973 Preakness Stakes on May 19, Secretariat broke last, but then made a huge, last-to-first move on the first turn. Raymond Woolfe, a photographer for the "Daily Racing Form", captured Secretariat launching the move with a leaping stride in the air. This was later used as the basis for the statue by John Skeaping that stands in the Belmont Park paddock. Turcotte later said that he was proudest of this win because of the split-second decision he made going into the turn: "I let my horse drop back, when I went to drop in, they started backing up into me.
Secretariat (horse) | Preakness Stakes
Canadian Bound (April 29, 1975 – 1992) was the first Thoroughbred yearling racehorse ever to be sold for more than US$1 million. He was part of the first crop of foals Secretariat. He proved to be of little use as a racehorse, managing one second-place finish in three starts in France and running unplaced in his only race in the United States.
Canadian Bound | Introduction
In January 1973, Christopher Chenery, the founder of Meadow Stables, died and the taxes on his estate forced his daughter Penny to consider selling Secretariat. Together with Seth Hancock of Claiborne Farm, she instead managed to syndicate the horse, selling 32 shares worth $190,000 each for a total of $6.08 million, a world syndication record at the time, surpassing the previous record for Nijinsky who was syndicated for $5.44 million in 1970. Hancock said the sale was easy, citing Secretariat's two-year-old performance, breeding, and appearance. "He's, well, he's a hell of a horse." Chenery retained four shares in the horse and would have complete control over his three-year-old racing campaign, but agreed that he would be retired at the end of the year.
Secretariat (horse) | 1973: Three-year-old season
In 2013, Secretariat was inducted into the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame in honor of his victory in the Canadian International 40 years earlier. Secretariat was also the focus of a 2013 segment of "60 Minutes Sports". In March 2016, Secretariat's Triple Crown victory was rated #13 in the "Sports Illustrated" listing of the 100 Greatest Moments in Sports History. Due to Secretariat's enduring popularity, Chenery remained a prominent figure in racing and a powerful advocate for Thoroughbred aftercare and veterinary research until her death in 2017. In 2004, the Maker's Mark Secretariat Center, dedicated to reschooling former racehorses and matching them to new homes, opened at the Kentucky Horse Park.
Secretariat (horse) | Honors and recognition
In late October she ran in the Canadian International Stakes at Woodbine Racecourse in Toronto and finished second, beaten half a length by the 1974 Epsom Derby winner Snow Knight, who went on to be voted American Champion Male Turf Horse. The filly's last race was the Washington, D.C. International over one and a half miles at Laurel Park Racecourse in which she was opposed by Snow Knight, Dahlia, Nobiliary, Star Appeal and On My Way. Held up by Desaint in the early stages, he produced her usual strong run in the straight but failed to overhaul Nobiliary and finished second, beaten three quarters of a length.
Comtesse de Loir | 1975: four-year-old season
In 1999, under trainer Phil England, five-year-old Thornfield won the Grade 2 Niagara Breeders' Cup Handicap. Ridden by Richard Dos Ramos, they then won the $1.5 million Canadian International as the longest shot in the field. The win made Thornfield the first winner sired by an International winner. His 1999 performances earned him Canadian Horse of the Year and Canadian Champion Male Turf Horse honours.
Thornfield | Racing career
I absolutely could not fault him in any way. And neither could the rest of them and that was the amazing thing about it. The body and the head and the eye and the general attitude. It was just incredible. I couldn't believe my eyes, frankly." In August, Secretariat entered the Sanford Stakes, facing off with highly regarded Linda's Chief, the only horse ever to be favored against Secretariat in any of his races. Entering the stretch, Secretariat was blocked by the horses in front of him but then made his way through "like a hawk scattering a barnyard of chickens" on his way to a three-length win.
Secretariat (horse) | 1972: Two-year-old season
The Canadian International Stakes is a Grade I stakes race for thoroughbred racehorses three years of age and up on Turf. It is held annually in October at Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The current purse is Since its creation in 1938, the race has undergone many changes including the conditions, track surface, distance, location, and name. The first renewal was run as the Long Branch Championship, held at the Long Branch Racetrack in Etobicoke. and was restricted to Canadian-bred three-year-olds. In 1939, it was renamed the Canadian International Stakes and was restricted to Canadian-owned horses. In 1940, the race was opened to horses of all ages, though the owner still had to be a Canadian resident.
Canadian International Stakes | Introduction
"Our sport wasn't keeping up with the progress made in other areas," he once said. "We had too many tracks... our patronage was falling, we had low purses and many bad horses, and I was afraid that racing might die here as it did in Quebec." Instead of operating fourteen racetracks each with 14-day race meetings, he concentrated the industry in Toronto and Fort Erie. In 1956, he opened "new" Woodbine racetrack on the outskirts of Toronto while renovating "old" Woodbine (subsequently renamed Greenwood racetrack). New Woodbine developed into a world-class venue, especially when Taylor convinced Penny Chenery to have Secretariat make his final start in the Canadian International in 1973.
E. P. Taylor | Thoroughbred racing
Maple was the jockey for Hall of Famer Riva Ridge in the 1973 Marlboro Cup, getting the ride when regular jockey Ron Turcotte rode Secretariat to victory in the same race. His strong 2nd-place performance earned him the opportunity of a lifetime later that year when Turcotte was suspended from riding for five days, and Eddie Maple rode Secretariat to victory in his last race, the Canadian International Stakes at Woodbine Racetrack. In 1982 he scored his second win in the Canadian International with Majesty's Prince.
Eddie Maple | Introduction
Three days after that, he was sent to the track again and suffered the only loss of his career when he finished second by a nose in the William Hendrie Memorial Handicap. In his final race in June 1934, Horometer won the Canadian Breeders' Handicap at the now-defunct Long Branch Racetrack in Toronto but came out of the race with an injury and, after apparently recovering, went lame following a training workout. According to the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame, in 1935 jockey Frankie Mann said, "In those days they weren't able to repair a horse's foot like they can today, so he'd had it.
Horometer | Introduction
Sent south to Saratoga Race Course, he ran second in the United States Hotel Stakes to Cornelius Vanderbilt Whitney's colt Career Boy. The following year, he won Canada's most prestigious race, the Queen's Plate, as well as the Prince of Wales Stakes and the Breeders' Stakes, which constituted the Triple Crown series created three years later. His 1956 performances earned Canadian Champ Canadian Horse of the Year honours, and he retired as the richest Thoroughbred in Canadian racing history. Canadian Champ was ridden by jockeys David Stevenson and Eugene Rodriguez. When he raced in 1957 at age four, Canadian Champ's best results were a win in the Swynford Stakes at Woodbine Racetrack and three stakes race seconds.
Canadian Champ | Introduction
In 1950, the nearly eighty-year-old McLaughlin retired from racing, selling his Parkwood Stable to E. P. Taylor, under whom it would become known as Windfields Farm. A long-time director of the Ontario Jockey Club, McLaughlin was inducted into Canada's Sports Hall of Fame in 1963 and the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame in 1977.
Samuel McLaughlin | Thoroughbred horse racing
It is the only race track in North America which stages Thoroughbred and Standardbred (harness) meetings on the same day. The Canadian International and Woodbine Mile (1981) are Canada's most important Grade I races worth C$1,000,000 each, and have been won by many renowned horses such as Secretariat and Wise Dan respectively. Other key races include Woodbine Oaks (1956), Prince of Wales Stakes (1929), Breeders' Stakes (1889) and Canadian Derby (1930).
Horse racing | Canada
On September 15, Secretariat returned to Belmont Park in the inaugural Marlboro Cup, which was originally intended to be a match race with stablemate Riva Ridge, the 1972 Derby and Belmont Stakes winner. After Secretariat's loss in the Whitney, the field was expanded to invite top horses from across the country. Entries included 1972 turf champion and top California stakes winner Cougar II, Canadian champion Kennedy Road, 1972 American champion three-year-old colt Key to the Mint, Travers winner Annihilate 'Em (the only other three-year-old in the race), and Onion. Riva Ridge was assigned top weight of 127 pounds (one pound over the weight-for-age scale), Key to the Mint and Cougar II were at 126 pounds, scale weight, while Secretariat was at 124, three pounds over scale for his age.
Secretariat (horse) | Marlboro Cup
The Colin Stakes is a Canadian Thoroughbred horse race run annually during the later half of July at Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto, Ontario. Open to two-year-old horses, it is contested over a distance of 6 furlongs on Tapeta and currently carries a purse of $95,800. Inaugurated in 1956 at Fort Erie Racetrack, the great filly La Prevoyante won the 1972 race by beating her male counterparts then went on to a career that would see her inducted in both the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame and the U.S. Racing Hall of Fame. The 1982 edition was won by Sunny's Halo who won the following year's Kentucky Derby.
Colin Stakes | Introduction
The Canadian Triple Crown is a series of three Thoroughbred horse races run annually in Canada which is open to three-year-old horses foaled in Canada. Established in 1959, the series is unique in that it shares the same distances as its American counterpart, but is contested on three different race surfaces. The first leg, the Queen's Plate, is contested at 1¼ miles on Tapeta at Toronto, Ontario's Woodbine Racetrack, whereas the July Prince of Wales Stakes is a 1³/ mile event run on dirt at Fort Erie Racetrack in Fort Erie, Ontario. The final leg is the 1½ mile Breeders' Stakes in August which is run on Turf over one full lap of the E.
Canadian Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing | Introduction
D. Litten. Despite his nine years, Caduceus showed he was the equal of the top American horses, winning the last race of the series, only to be disqualified. He also was leased to American interests and at 10 years of age was still winning races. False Step was driven in the Yonkers International series during the 1960–61 season by his trainer C C Devine. False Step's performances showed he was one of the greatest pacers in the world. He beat the acknowledged American champion, Adios Butler, in a 1½ mile race. He was sold in America for 115,000 dollars, the fifth-highest price paid for a pacer in the United States.
Harness racing in New Zealand | United States and Canada
The Canadian Maturity Stakes was a Canadian Thoroughbred horse race run annually in late November at Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto, Ontario. Inaugurated in 1953, the race was restricted to four-year-old horses bred in Canada. It was contested on turf over a distance of a mile and a quarter (10 furlongs). At a time when Thoroughbreds regularly ran on both dirt and turf, the Canadian Maturity Stakes attracted the best four-year-olds in Canada. However, by the late 1980s that situation had changed dramatically and by the time of the 1994 running, it attracted a field of only four horses. The Canadian Maturity Stakes was won for five consecutive years between 1990 and 1994 by Sam-Son Farm and Hall of Fame trainer, Jim Day.
Canadian Maturity Stakes | Introduction
Racing Hall of Fame jockey Eddie Arcaro in Canada's most prestigious race, the Queen's Plate. She went on to win against fillies in the Test Stakes at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York. As a four-year-old, Canadiana raced against some of the top fillies in the United States. Her best results were a win of the 1954 Vagrancy Handicap at Aqueduct Racetrack in Queens, New York and seconds in the Gazelle and Diana Handicaps. Canadiana raced as a five-year-old, winning the Highlander and Jacques Cartier Stakes at Woodbine.
Canadiana (horse) | Horse of the Year
For his first start on July 4, 1972 at Aqueduct Racetrack, Secretariat was made the lukewarm favorite at 3–1. At the start, a horse named Quebec cut in front of the field, causing a chain reaction that resulted in Secretariat being bumped hard. According to jockey Paul Feliciano, he would have fallen if he hadn't been so strong. Secretariat recovered, only to run into traffic on the backstretch. In tenth position at the top of the stretch, he closed ground rapidly and finished fourth, beaten by only lengths. In many of his subsequent races, Secretariat hung back at the start, which Laurin later attributed to the bumping he received in his debut.
Secretariat (horse) | 1972: Two-year-old season
The Seagram Stables of Waterloo, Ontario were owned by the brothers Edward, Norman and Thomas Seagram. At age two, Sir Harry was raced at tracks in the Toronto area but had most of his success at two tracks in Montreal. At Blue Bonnets Raceway where he won the Kindergarten Stakes and on July 31, 1926 set a new track record of 0:59 1/5 for 5 furlongs on dirt. At Dorval Park, the track where the great Exterminator won his last race on June 21, 1924, Sir Harry won the 1926 Juvenile Stakes. Sir Harry died in September 1930 when a Seagram barn caught fire.
Sir Harry (Canadian horse) | Racing career
Ridden by Irwin Driedger, as a two-year-old in 1985, Grey Classic won four of seven starts including the Summer Stakes and then the two top races for Canadian juveniles, the Cup and Saucer Stakes on turf and the Coronation Futurity Stakes on dirt. His performances earned him Canadian Champion Two-Year-Old Colt honors for 1985. At age three, Grey Classic suffered with condition problems and did not race until July 13, 1986, when he ran eighth as one of the favorites in the Queen's Plate, Canada's most prestigious race and first leg of the Canadian Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing. Minor injuries kept the colt out of the next two legs of the Triple Crown, and a series of ailments meant that he did not win an important race again until age five.
Grey Classic | Racing career
The Canadian Stakes is a Grade II Thoroughbred horse race run annually at Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Run in mid September, it is a Grade II event open to fillies and mares, three years of age and older. It is raced on turf over a distance of "about" miles. Known as the Canadian Handicap until 2006, it was inaugurated at the now defunct Greenwood Raceway in 1955 as a mile race on dirt and was open to horses of either sex, aged three and older. In 1964, the event was transferred to Woodbine Racetrack where in 1970 it became a race on the grass for fillies and mares only.
Canadian Stakes | Introduction
The entrants in the Preakness featured three horses that did not compete in the Derby. At the start, Secretariat broke last, but then made a huge, last-to-first move on the first turn. After reaching the lead with furlongs to go, he was never challenged, and won by lengths, Sham finishing second and Our Native third. The victory led to the stallion being featured on several magazine covers. Secretariat would go on to win the Belmont Stakes in the succeeding weeks, becoming the ninth horse to complete the Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing and the first in 25 years. The timing of the race was questioned, as the official clock malfunctioned and the official timer recorded a result slower than that recorded by clockers for the "Daily Racing Form", who maintained that Secretariat had set a record.
1973 Preakness Stakes | Introduction
Ronald Joseph Morel "Ronnie" Turcotte, (born July 22, 1941) is a retired Canadian thoroughbred race horse jockey best known as the rider of Secretariat, winner of the U.S. Triple Crown in 1973.
Ron Turcotte | Introduction
"To us, he was Big Red, and he had a personality. He was a clown and was always cutting up, always into some devilment." Some time later, Chenery got her first look at the foal and made a one word entry in her notebook: "Wow!" That fall, Chenery and Elizabeth Ham, the Meadow's longtime secretary, worked together to name the newly weaned colt. The first set of names submitted to the Jockey Club (Sceptre, Royal Line, and Something Special) played on the names of his sire and dam, but were rejected. The second set, submitted in January 1971, were Games of Chance, Deo Volente ("God Willing"), and Secretariat, the last suggested by Ham based on her previous job associated with the secretariat of the League of Nations (the predecessor of the United Nations).
Secretariat (horse) | Early years
The race was first run in 1967 and was named in recognition of the Canadian Centennial that was being celebrated that year by many Canadian racing fans who vacation in Florida during the winter months. The 1990 Canadian Triple Crown champion and Horse of the Year, Izvestia, wintered in Florida and made his 1991 racing debut with a win in this race. The race was downgraded to a listed race for 2005 and 2006 when it was restored to its Grade III status.
Canadian Turf Stakes | History
Both of these horses had lost to the Champion in the Triple Crown series. The distance of the 1974 inaugural race was . It was run over in 1975/76 and extended to from 1978 to 1984, before settling at miles from 1985 to 2018. In 2019 the race was cut back to one mile.
Secretariat Stakes | Introduction
For his last two races of the year, Caerwent was dropped back in distance to compete in sprint races. In the Vernons Sprint Cup over six furlongs at Haydock Park on 3 September he finished third behind Dowsing and Silver Fling despite hanging badly to the left in the closing stages. The colt ended his racing career in the Prix de l'Abbaye over 1000 metres at Longchamp Racecourse in October. He finished third behind Cadeaux Genereux and Handsome Sailor but was promoted to second place when Cadeaux Genereux was disqualified for causing interference early in the race.
Caerwent (horse) | 1987: three-year-old season
1961: Christopher Chenery's Meadow Stable won the colt division with Sir Gaylord and the filly division with their future Hall of Fame inductee Cicada. 1964: Wheatley Stable, owned by Gladys Mills Phipps and her brother Ogden L. Mills, won the colt division with Bold Lad and the filly division with Queen Empress. 1971: Calumet Farm won the colt division with Plum Bold and the filly division with Rondeau in what would prove to be the final running of the National Stallion races.
National Stallion Stakes | Owners who won both divisions in the same year
His performances in 1965 made him the first British Columbia-bred horse to win Canadian Horse of the Year honours. In 1965 George Royal made Canadian history when he became the 1st horse to ride in a commercial passenger plane when he flew with Air Canada from Vancouver to Toronto. In 1966, in Johnny Longden's last race as a jockey, George Royal repeated as winner of the San Juan Capistrano Handicap. In the Clubhouse at Santa Anita Park there is an oil painting of the finish of the 1966 San Juan Capistrano, which was also used for the cover of the Santa Anita official program during the 1967 racing season.
George Royal | Racing career
Quiz's final season as a racehorse began, as usual, at the Craven meeting, where he finished fifth of the seven runners under a weight of 129 pounds in a division of the Oatlands Stakes. After this race, Quiz was sold and ran at the First Spring meeting two weeks later in the ownership of Lord Rous. Quiz was matched against Lord Sackville's five-year-old Bustard and recorded his last victory by winning "very easy" at odds of 5/2 over the Beacon Course. His final race came two days later, when he started favourite for a King's Plate over the same course, but finished last of the five runners behind Hippomenes.
Quiz (horse) | 1807: nine-year-old season
Canadian Champ (1953–1978) was a Canadian Thoroughbred Hall of Fame racehorse who in 1956 won the three races that became the Canadian Triple Crown Championship in 1959. Sired by Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame inductee Windfields, he was out of the mare Bolesteo. Trained by John Passero, during his racing career Canadian Champ set three track records at Woodbine Racetrack and equalled another there as well as at Gulfstream Park in Florida. In his two-year-old season, he won 1955's Coronation Futurity Stakes and the Cup and Saucer Stakes, the two most important races for his age group in Canada.
Canadian Champ | Introduction
The light and dark blue silks of his stable were in action throughout the U.S. In 1931 he was among the first Canadians to run a horse in the KentuckyDerby. A horse he imported from Argentina, Filisteo, set an American record in 1941 in the Exterminator Handicap at Pimlico and later sired Plate winner Collisteo. Hatch, who shied from publicity, always sent one of this three sons – Cliff, Doug or Carr – to receive the Plate trophy. In 2000, Hatch was posthumously inducted into the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame as an industry builder. Harry C. Hatch died on May 8, 1946 at the age of 62.
Harry C. Hatch | Thoroughbred horse racing
He started the 11/4 second favourite behind the Aidan O'Brien-trained Honolulu who had finished third in the St Leger two weeks earlier. After being restrained by Moore in the early stages he took the lead approaching the final furlong and won by two lengths from Zaham, with Honolulu three quarter of a length away in third. Three weeks later Ask was sent to Canada to contest the Canadian International Stakes at Woodbine Racecourse and started favourite in a twelve-runner field. After being held up in the early stages and turning into the straight he produced a strong late run but failed by a short head to overhaul the American gelding Cloudy's Knight.
Ask (horse) | 2007: four-year-old season
In 1996, the race was run on dirt and was split into two divisions in 1982 through 1985 and again in 1989.
Canadian Stakes | Introduction
The Canadian Horse of the Year is a thoroughbred horse racing honour given annually since 1951 by the Jockey Club of Canada. It is the most prestigious honour in Canadian thoroughbred horse racing. Part of the Sovereign Awards program since 1975, it is similar to the Eclipse Award for American Horse of the Year honours given in the United States. The original eligibility rules stipulated that the winner be a Canadian-bred horse that did its "best running" in Canada. In 1964, the rule was altered for Northern Dancer, who was a Canadian-bred but whose most notable wins came in the United States when he won the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes.
Canadian Horse of the Year | Introduction
Out of the starting gate, Secretariat and Sham raced evenly through the first turn. Through a half-mile, the two were even. Entering the backstretch and approaching three-quarters of a mile, Secretariat began to distance himself as Sham began to fade, ultimately finishing last. It was later discovered that Sham had suffered a hairline fracture of his right front cannon bone during the race, which ended his racing career. Secretariat continued to extend his advantage for the rest of the race, finishing 31 lengths over the second-place finisher, Twice a Prince. Twice a Prince started slowly and moved along the rail until reaching second position, passing Sham and outpacing My Gallant.
1973 Belmont Stakes | Race summary
The Quebec Derby was a Canadian Thoroughbred horse race held annually between 1961 and 1975 at Blue Bonnets Raceway in Montreal, Canada. A race for three-year-olds on dirt, it was run over a distance of 1⅛ miles (9 furlongs or 1,811 metres). The Blue Bonnets Raceway held only harness racing events at the time when prominent Canadian horseman Jean-Louis Levesque purchased the track in 1959. He brought Thoroughbred horse racing there on a seasonal basis. The Quebec Derby was the track's premier annual event for Thoroughbreds and Levesque himself would win the race five times with Royal Maple (1963), Pierlou (1964), Fanfreluche (1970), La Prevoyante (1973), and L'Enjoleur (1975).
Quebec Derby | Introduction
In 1975 he won the prestigious Queen's Plate with L'Enjoleur, who won a second consecutive Canadian Horse of the Year award. Levesque won the title for the first time in 1970 with Fanfreluche. In 1976, La Prevoyante was part of the first group of inductees into the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame. A daughter of Buckpasser, La Prevoyante was also inducted into the American Racing Hall of Fame in 1995. As well, Lévesque was part of the breeding syndicate that purchased the Triple Crown champion, Secretariat for a then-record price of $6.08 million. A friend of prominent racing owners Bud McDougald and E.
Jean-Louis Lévesque | Horse racing
Izvestia's career ended on October 21, 1991, when he had to be humanely euthanized after breaking a left hind leg in three places while competing in the Rothmans International. In 1999, he was inducted into the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame.
Izvestia (horse) | Introduction
He reached third place in the straight but was unable to maintain his challenged and finished sixth behind Oratorio, beaten almost seven lengths by the winner. On his final appearance of the year he was sent to Canada for the Pattison Canadian International Stakes at Woodbine Racecourse. He finished third behind Relaxed Gesture, but was demoted after an inquiry by the racecourse stewards found that Smullen had struck the fourth-placed finisher Electrocutionist with his whip in the straight.
Grey Swallow | 2005: four-year-old season
Two weeks later he was sent to Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto for the Canadian International Stakes and finished fifth behind Snurge.
Saddlers' Hall | 1992: four-year-old season
With the confidence that he could hold his own against older horses on turf, Johnny D. was shipped up to Canada to run in the Canadian International Stakes, a prestigious Grade I race run at Woodbine Racecourse in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. There, he ran third to future National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame inductee Exceller. In November, he was sent to another prestigious international stakes race, the D.C. International at Laurel Park. Facing another top international field of grass horses, he was sent off at 10-1. The French import Crow took the early lead in the mile and a half race, but entering the backstretch, Johnny D.
Johnny D. | Three-year-old career
Owner E. P. Taylor chose to bypass the Belmont Stakes to return for Canada's most important race, the Queen's Plate. Victoria Park won the race in a record time that stood for more than forty years. He was voted 1960's Canadian Champion 3 Yr-Old Colt and Canadian Horse of the Year.
Victoria Park (horse) | Racing career
The Canadian Pacing Derby was first run on August 12, 1936 at Fountain Park Racetrack in New Hamburg, Ontario operated by the New Hamburg Turf Club. For 1949 only, the race was renamed the Canadian Pacing And Trotting Derby with trotting horses allowed to compete against pacers. The lone trotter entered finished far back. The Derby was suspended after the 1957 running and was not revived until 1965 when it was raced as a 1-3/16 mile event at Greenwood Raceway in Toronto. The following year the race returned to the standard distance of a mile.
Canadian Pacing Derby | Historical race events
During his career, he competed at distances from five to fourteen furlongs but is best known for winning Canada's most prestigious race in 1973, the mile and a quarter (10 furlongs) Queen's Plate. In the ensuing second leg of the Canadian Triple Crown series, he ran third to stablemate Tara Road in the Prince of Wales Stakes on the turf at Fort Erie Racetrack
Royal Chocolate | Racing career
A veterinary examination determined that the colt's lameness was caused by a "slipping stifle". Despite his physical problems, Gilles de Retz contested the Derby at Epsom Downs Racecourse in June. He started a 28/1 outsider and made no impact, finishing unplaced behind the French-trained Lavandin. Later in the month he returned to the one mile distance for the St. James's Palace Stakes at Royal Ascot, but again ran poorly, finishing last of the six runners on his last appearance of the season.
Gilles de Retz (horse) | 1956: three-year-old season
In 1985 Armbro Dallas finished first in the final but was disqualified making runnerup What's Next the winner. As a result, the race time was not recorded as official. Apaches Fame's win in 1990 marked the first time an Ontario sired, bred, and owned horse won the Confederation Cup.
Confederation Cup Pace | Historical race events
Following their 1989 Triple Crown with the colt With Approval, in 1990 they repeated the feat with Izvestia, an achievement that has never been equalled. Don Seymour retired in 1994 having won the Sovereign Award as Canada's top jockey a record four times. In 1995 he was voted the Avelino Gomez Memorial Award in recognition of his significant contribution to the sport of horse racing. In 1999, he was inducted into the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame.
Don Seymour | Introduction
Canadian Bound began racing at two, finishing second on his only start. He finished out of the money in both of his 1978 starts. At age four, he was sent to Hollywood Park Racetrack in California, where in the final race of his career, he finished fourth.
Canadian Bound | Racing career
"It hurts that I'll live in infamy. Who wants to be known for the closest ever to almost win the Triple Crown?" Later that year, he went on to ride the Canadian 3-year-old champion colt Archers Bay to victory in the Queen's Plate, becoming the first jockey since Bill Hartack in 1964 to complete the Kentucky Derby/Queen's Plate double in the same year. In 2000, Desormeaux won his second Kentucky Derby aboard Fusaichi Pegasus. The two combined to take the Wood Memorial Stakes and Jerome Handicap. "Probably the most talented horse I rode (was) Fusaichi Pegasus," he said in 2004.
Kent Desormeaux | 1998-2009: Quest for the Triple Crown
Questionnaire (1927–1950) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse bred and raced by James Butler, president and owner of Empire City Race Track, who owned his sire Sting and grandsire Spur. Questionnaire was race conditioned by Andy Schuttinger, who was his trainer through 1930, after which Edward J. Bennett took over. Questionnaire had an outstanding year at age three. Although he did not run in the first two legs of the 1930 U.S. Triple Crown series, he finished third to Triple Crown champion Gallant Fox in the Belmont Stakes. Overall, he won nine important races in 1930 and then in 1931 captured the prestigious Brooklyn, Empire City and Metropolitan Handicaps.
Questionnaire (horse) | Introduction
In 1954, the eligibility was revised to ages three and up with no residence restriction. The race name was modified slightly from 1966 to 1980 when it was known as the Canadian International Championship Stakes. From 1981 through to 1995 the race was known as the Rothmans International for its sponsor, the Canadian subsidiary of Rothmans International plc. Since 2003 it has been sponsored by Pattison Outdoor Advertising. Inaugurated in 1938 on the dirt at Toronto's Long Branch Racetrack, except for consolidation during World War II it remained there until 1956 when the track closed its doors. Moved to Woodbine Racetrack in 1956, in 1958 it became a turf race.
Canadian International Stakes | Introduction
No Class (March 30, 1974 – 1993) was a Canadian Hall of Fame Thoroughbred racehorse.
No Class (horse) | Introduction
The Questionnaire Handicap was an American Thoroughbred horse race named in honor of the horse Questionnaire who was bred and raced by James Butler, the late president and owner of Empire City Race Track. The race was held from its inception in 1938 through 1942 at the Empire City RaceTrack in Yonkers, New York but with the United States becoming involved in World War II, in 1943 rationing and other wartime limitations resulted in the Empire City Association's decision to go back to hosting only harness racing. The Questionnaire Handicap was then moved to the Jamaica Race Course where it would run under the sponsorship of the Empire City Association through 1953 when it had its final running.
Questionnaire Handicap | Introduction
After his two-year-old racing season in which he was voted the Canadian 2-Year-old Champion, Kennedy Road underwent an operation to remove a bone fragment from a hind ankle. His injury did not affect his racing ability, and in 1971 he won Canada's most prestigious race, the Queen's Plate, then was voted that year's Canadian 3-Year-old Champion. At age four, his performances earned him Canadian Champion Older Male Horse.
Kennedy Road (horse) | 1970-1972 Canadian career
The race was named to honor the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame and U.S. Racing Hall of Fame inductee, La Prevoyante. Owned by Quebec businessman and prominent racing stable owner, Jean-Louis Levesque's, La Prevoyante went undefeated in all twelve of her races in 1972 and was voted U.S. Champion 2-Year-Old Filly and Canadian Horse of the Year. In 1974, she collapsed and died of a ruptured lung following the Miss Florida Handicap at Calder Race Course, which also honored her with its own La Prevoyante Stakes. The La Prevoyante at Calder has since been moved to Gulfstream Park.
La Prevoyante Stakes (Woodbine Racetrack) | Introduction
The colt began racing at two at Vancouver's Exhibition Park, winning four of his eight starts. Although a winner of nine consecutive stakes races at age three, he received little notice in Canada in 1964 as a result of Northern Dancer becoming the first Canadian-bred to win the Kentucky Derby. Ridden and eventually trained by Texan Donald Richardson, George Royal was sent to California to compete, where Johnny Longden took over as jockey. In 1965, George Dunn handled his conditioning, for a short time, on behalf of Robert Hall. In 1965, George Royal won the 1-mile San Juan Capistrano Handicap on the turf at Santa Anita Park, then later the Canadian International Stakes at Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto.
George Royal | Racing career
This was the last race that Citation lost for almost two years. Citation reversed the loss to Saggy in the Chesapeake Stakes at Havre de Grace Racetrack, which he won over Bovard by 4 lengths, with Saggy well back. Citation followed with his final Kentucky Derby prep, a win in the Derby Trial Stakes.
Citation (horse) | 1948: three-year-old season
In addition, The Lark Twist's owner Larry Boyce scratched his horse from the race because he received word that Our Native registered, dropping the total number of horses competing to six. However, on the 17th, Boyce attempted to re-enter The Lark Twist, but was denied under the Rules of Racing of Maryland which stated that the scratching of a horse was irreversible. An Associated Press article commented that the credentials of Secretariat and Sham could lead to the running being one of the smallest since 1964. Following his record-breaking victory at the Kentucky Derby, Secretariat was the favorite. In the days between the Derby and the Preakness, groom Eddie Sweat noted that it was strange not having any rumors circulating about Secretariat's health.
1973 Preakness Stakes | Pre-race activity
His tendons, always delicate, began to cause significant problems and he missed the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes before being retired not long before the St. Leger. He only had five starts but was undefeated in his last three, all of which are now Group One races.
Crepello | Racing record
It is beyond dispute that Nijinsky was a most unlucky loser. Less than two weeks after his defeat in the Arc, Nijinsky ran his last race in the Champion Stakes over ten furlongs at Newmarket. Although he had been known to sweat freely before some of his previous races, Nijinsky on this occasion appeared to become particularly nervous and anxious before the start. In the race itself, he ran well below his best form and was beaten 3/4 length at odds of 4/11 by the five-year-old English horse Lorenzaccio. O'Brien on this occasion concurred with Piggott, saying that Nijinsky appeared to have "lost his fire." Nijinsky was retired to stand at stud at Claiborne Farm near Paris, Kentucky having been syndicated in August for $5,440,000.
Nijinsky (horse) | Autumn
Named for Pender Harbour, British Columbia, an unincorporated community within the Sunshine Coast Regional District, he raced for six years for his owners, winning eight other stakes races. The durable Pender Harbour competed for the last time on November 29, 2015, finishing second to Melmich in the mile and three-quarter Valedictory Stakes run in track record time. A gelding, after retirement he became a riding horse in Western Canada for his Alberta owners.
Pender Harbour (horse) | Racing career
The last horse to do so was the filly Rachel Alexandra in 2009. It was the first win of a Triple Crown race for his trainer Chad Brown and the second for jockey Javier Castellano, who was riding the colt for the first time. "I'm not going to dispute the fact that I brought in a fresh horse as part of our strategy", said Brown. "Classic Empire and Always Dreaming are two outstanding horses and our strategy was, if we were going to ever beat them, let's take them on two weeks' rest when we have six, and it worked."
Cloud Computing (horse) | Racing career
Racing Hall of Fame inductee Cicada. On returning to Canada, she won the Canadian Oaks (now known as the Woodbine Oaks), Canada's most prestigious race for three-year-old fillies. One week later, she faced the colts in the Queen's Plate, where she and stablemate Choperion ran one-two as the even money favorites. Flaming Page became the first filly to complete the Oaks-Plate double. After the Queen's Plate, Flaming Page returned to the United Stakes where she suffered a career-ending injury in the Coaching Club American Oaks. Canada's leading money-earner in 1962 with $88,075, she was named the Canadian Champion three-year-old filly.
Flaming Page | Racing career
That fall, jockey Ismael Valenzuela made it back-to-back wins in the Canadian International Stakes.
George Royal | Racing career
Out of the starting gate, Secretariat and Sham traded the lead. Around the three-quarters mile marker Sham began to fade and Secretariat began to extend an advantage. Twice a Prince and My Gallant overtook Sham to take second and third, respectively. Sham finished last, behind Pvt. Smiles, who was in last before Sham slowed severely. The victory in the Belmont, when combined with Secretariat's previous victories in the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness Stakes, meant he completed the Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing. This was significant, as he was the ninth horse to complete the feat and broke a 25-year drought where no horse had completed the achievement.
1973 Belmont Stakes | Introduction
Neil Milbert of the "Chicago Tribune" wrote that Secretariat "ran what may have been the greatest horse race in history." When asked about Secretariat's margin of victory, trainer Lucien Laurin stated: "Naturally, not that big!" He further commented on Sham's performance saying "The horse we had to kill, we did." My Gallant's jockey Ángel Cordero Jr. said Secretariat was "just like a car." Secretariat's jockey Ron Turcotte told the press that he saw the timer on the track hit 2:20 and he told himself "Oh I can make it" and continued to press Secretariat forward to break the course record.
1973 Belmont Stakes | Analysis
With Feliciano again up, Secretariat returned to the track on July 15 as the 6–5 favorite. He broke poorly, but then rushed past the field on the turn to win by six lengths. On July 31 in an allowance race at Saratoga, Feliciano was replaced by Ron Turcotte, the regular jockey for Meadow Stables. Turcotte had ridden the colt in several morning workouts, but had missed his first two starts while recovering from a fall. Secretariat's commanding win as the 2–5 favorite caught the attention of veteran sportswriter, Charles Hatton. He later reported, "You carry an ideal around in your head, and boy, I thought, 'This is it.' I never saw perfection before.
Secretariat (horse) | 1972: Two-year-old season
Secretariat's earnings in 1973 were, at the time, a single-season record.
Secretariat (horse) | Racing statistics
With Majesty's Prince unsuccessful on dirt, his handlers decided to try him on turf. Eleven days after the Kentucky Derby, he debuted on grass with a win in the Hill Prince Stakes at Aqueduct Racetrack. He later won the Lexington Stakes at Belmont Park and the Lamplighter Handicap at Monmouth Park Racetrack. On October 17, 1982, Majesty's Prince won the first major event of his career, the Rothmans International at Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The race was the last leg of a series of three turf races that featured top North American and European entrants. Following his Canadian victory, the three-year-old colt ran second to April Run in the next two legs of a series: the October 23 Turf Classic at New York's Belmont Park and the November 7 Washington, D.C.
Majesty's Prince | Switch to turf racing
Originally conceived as a match race with Secretariat's stablemate and 1972 Kentucky Derby winner Riva Ridge, it was changed to an invitational race that brought together the top horses 3 years of age and older. In the inaugural race, Secretariat set a world record time for miles on dirt while winning by lengths. The race became a very important annual event and 1978 marked the first of only two times in racing history that two American Triple Crown winners met in a single race, with Seattle Slew, the 1977 champion, defeating the 1978 champion Affirmed by three lengths. (The two met again in that year's edition of the Jockey Club Gold Cup; Seattle Slew lost by a nose to Exceller, while Affirmed finished up the track due to a slipped saddle.)
Marlboro Cup Invitational Handicap | Introduction
Cigar rebounded in the 1996 Woodward Stakes at Belmont Park, which was his last victory ever. Cigar lost to Skip Away (who went on to win the 1997 Breeders' Cup Classic and the 1998 Horse of the Year title) in the Jockey Club Gold Cup, and concluded his career with a third-place finish (again suffering from a wide trip) to upset winner Alphabet Soup and 1996 Preakness Stakes winner Louis Quatorze in the 1996 Breeders' Cup Classic at Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto, Canada. Despite losing his last two races, tying Citation's race record was enough to earn him his second straight Champion Older Male and Horse of the Year honors.
Cigar (horse) | The end of the winning streak
In the fall of 1989, Secretariat became afflicted with laminitis—a painful and debilitating hoof condition. When his condition failed to improve after a month of treatment, he was euthanized on October 4 at the age of 19. Secretariat was buried at Claiborne Farm, given the rare honor of being buried whole (traditionally only the head, heart, and hooves of a winning race horse are buried). At the time of Secretariat's death, the veterinarian who performed the necropsy, Dr. Thomas Swerczek, head pathologist at the University of Kentucky, did not weigh Secretariat's heart, but stated, "We just stood there in stunned silence.
Secretariat (horse) | Death
1961: Christopher Chenery's Meadow Stable won the filly division with their future Hall of Fame inductee Cicada and the colts division with Sir Gaylord. 1964: Wheatley Stable, owned by Gladys Mills Phipps and her brother Ogden L. Mills, won the colts division with Bold Lad and the filly division with Queen Empress. 1971: Calumet Farm won the filly division with Rondeau and the colt division with Plum Bold in what would prove to be the final running of the National Stallion races.
National Stallion Stakes (filly division) | Owners who won both divisions in the same year
1951 was six-year-old Piet's last year of racing. He won his third consecutive Jamaica Handicap and notably ran second to Casemate in the Metropolitan Handicap and was third behind winner Arise in the Carter Handicap.
Piet (horse) | Racing career
The win in the Kentucky Derby marked Secretariat's third win in the four races he had run as a three-year old. After the race, jockey Ron Turcotte stated, in response to Secretariat's last place start, he "just dropped my hand on him and let him run his own race." With Secretariat's victory, trainer Lucien Laurin had his second consecutive win in the Derby, as Riva Ridge won in 1972. Turcotte accomplished a similar feat as he had ridden Riva Ridge, marking the third time a jockey had won in the Derby in consecutive years. When Secretariat pulled alongside Sham, Sham's jockey, Laffit Pincay Jr., felt Sham had a lot left, "but that other horse was just too much." Pincay stated that in future races, he planned to "wait a little longer before making my move." Donald Brumfield, Our Native's jockey said Twice a Prince kicked Our Native in the hoof and body while rearing in the starting gate.
1973 Kentucky Derby | Analysis
When it was clear that Secretariat would win, the sound reached a crescendo that reportedly made the grandstand shake. "The Blood-Horse" magazine editor Kent Hollingsworth described the impact: "Two twenty-four flat! I don't believe it. Impossible. But I saw it. I can't breathe. He won by a sixteenth of a mile! I saw it. I have to believe it." The race is widely considered the greatest performance of the twentieth century by a North American racehorse. Secretariat became the ninth Triple Crown winner in history, and the first since Citation in 1948, a gap of 25 years. Bettors holding 5,427 winning parimutuel tickets on Secretariat never redeemed them, presumably keeping them as souvenirs (and because the tickets would have paid only $2.20 on a $2 bet).
Secretariat (horse) | Belmont Stakes
At age two, Lauries Dancer won two her eight starts with her best stakes race results a third in both the Mazarine and Natalma Stakes. As a three-year-old in 1971, she developed into the best horse in Canada, female or male. She won the 1971 Bison City Stakes in stakes record time at Fort Erie Racetrack and the Star Shoot and Canadian Oaks at Woodbine. United States and Canadian Hall of Fame jockey Sandy Hawley rode her to victory in the Canadian Oaks, marking his second of five straight wins in Canada's most important race for three-year-old fillies. Sent to race in the United States at Delaware Park, she came from dead last in a field of eight to win the Delaware Oaks.
Lauries Dancer | Racing career
Izvestia (May 5, 1987 – October 21, 1991) was a Thoroughbred racehorse who won the Canadian Triple Crown in 1990. A grandson of Nearctic, who sired the legendary Northern Dancer, his damsire Personality was the 1970 Co-American Horse of the Year. Owned and bred by Kinghaven Farms, Izvestia began racing in the United States, winning two Graded stakes races at the Keeneland Race Course in Kentucky. He was shipped north in the spring of 1990 to his home base at Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto from which he won the Triple Crown. Having won it a year earlier on With Approval, jockey Don Seymour became the only jockey in history to ride two Canadian Triple Crown winners.
Izvestia (horse) | Introduction
George McCullagh owned and raced Thoroughbred racehorses. In 1939 his colt Archworth won Canada's most prestigious race, the King's Plate. The event was also noteworthy for the attendance of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth.
George McCullagh | Thoroughbred racing
Youth's best result in a conditions race at age two was a runner up position in the 1975 Prix Saint-Roman at Longchamp Racecourse in Paris. At age three, Youth developed into a major star on the turf both in France and in North America. In 1976, he won five important races in France including the Prix Lupin and the French Derby. On October 3, he ran third in the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe to winner Ivanjica, after which he was shipped to Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto, Canada, where under Hall of Fame jockey Sandy Hawley he won the October 23 Canadian International Championship Stakes.
Youth (horse) | Racing career
After another good year in 1985 with Chief’s Crown finishing 3-2-3 in the U.S. Triple Crown series then winning the Marlboro Cup Invitational Handicap and Travers Stakes, Roger Laurin retired. He did maintain his trainer’s license while devoting much of his time to the breeding of Thoroughbreds. In 1992, while racing on a very limited basis, he won the Victoriana Stakes at Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto with a horse he bred and owned. In August 2006, he returned again to race at Saratoga Race Course with two of his own horses.
Roger Laurin | A family business
Secretariat raced in Meadow Stables' blue-and-white-checkered colors. He never raced in track bandages, but typically wore a blinker hood, mostly to help him focus, but also because he had a tendency to run in towards the rail during races. In January 1972, he joined trainer Lucien Laurin's winter stable at Hialeah. Secretariat gained a reputation as a kind horse, likeable and unruffled in crowds or by the bumping that occurs between young horses. He had the physique of a runner, but at first was awkward and clumsy. He was frequently outpaced by more precocious stable mates, running a quarter-mile in 26 seconds compared to 23 seconds by his peers.
Secretariat (horse) | Racing career
A number of notable North American horses have won this race including George Smith who won the next year's Kentucky Derby, Belair Stud's colt Faireno in 1931 who was the first horse to break the one-minute barrier and who went on to win the 1932 Belmont Stakes. Notable Canadian-bred winners include Windfields (1945), Nearctic, (1956), Viceregal (1968), and Deputy Minister who in 1981 set a new race record for five furlongs that still stands. In 1982, Sunny's Halo finished second but the following year became only the second Canadian-bred horse to win the Kentucky Derby.
Victoria Stakes | Historical notes
With Approval (May 9, 1986 – June 21, 2010) was a Thoroughbred racehorse who won the Canadian Triple Crown in 1989 under jockey Don Seymour. Even though he missed the rest of his three-year-old season due to injury, he was named the 1989 Canadian Horse of the Year. At four, With Approval set a new world record of 2:10.26 for miles on turf while winning the Bowling Green Handicap. He also finished second in the 1990 Breeders' Cup Turf and the Arlington Million. In 1993, With Approval was inducted into the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame.
With Approval | Introduction
The 1973 Kentucky Derby on May 5 attracted a crowd of 134,476 to Churchill Downs, then the largest crowd in North American racing history. The bettors made the entry of Secretariat and Angle Light the 3–2 favorite, with Sham the second choice at 5–2. The start was marred when Twice a Prince reared in his stall, hitting Our Native, positioned next to him, and causing Sham to bang his head against the gate, loosening two teeth. Sham then broke poorly and cut himself, also bumping into Navajo. Secretariat avoided problems by breaking last from post position 10, then cut over to the rail.
Secretariat (horse) | Kentucky Derby