Sports Then and Now

The Grade One Preakness Stakes is known also as the “The Run for the Black Eyed Susans” due to the blanket of the Maryland State flower being traditionally draped over the winner’s neck at the end of the race.

The race is run annually over 9½ furlongs on a dirt track at the world famous Pimlico Racecourse in Baltimore, Maryland and is recognized as the second leg of the highly coveted American Triple Crown, which comprises of the Kentucky Derby (first leg) and Belmont Stakes (third leg). The attendances at the race are the second highest in the sport, with only the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs attracting more spectators, in 2010, 95,760 people attended but that was down from over 121,000 in 2007 following the banning of fans being able to bring their own beer. The race is open to colts and fillies, with the ‘boys’ having to carry 126lb and the girls 5lbs less.

The history of the race dates back to 1873 (2 years before the Kentucky Derby) when Pimlico introduced a new quality Stakes race for three year olds. It was called Preakness in honour of a colt of the same name, who was the winner of the feature race on the day that Pimlico first opened in 1870. The first ever race was won by My Sheba who won by 10 lengths in fantastic style which remained the most emphatic victory in the race until 2004 when Smarty Jones, who had won the Kentucky Derby two weeks previously, came home by 11 lengths. Smarty Jones was then aimed at the Belmont Stakes where he became an odds on favorite in the Belmont Stakes betting to win the race and thus the coveted Triple Crown, which had not been won since Affirmed achieved the feat in 1977. In heart breaking fashion however this hugely popular colt, whose presence at Belmont Park had attracted it’s biggest ever crowd, was to be denied in the ‘Belmont’ by the late run of 36/1 outsider Birdstone. Read the rest of this entry →

Best Mate touches down en eoute to a Gold Cup win

The Cheltenham Gold Cup is the feature race of the National Hunt horse racing season in the UK and Ireland. Globally, racing where horse jump fences and run over distances in excess of 2 miles receives little attention compared to flat racing. The Gold Cup in fact is run over a distance of 3 miles 2 furlongs and 22 fences are required to be jumped and as such, attracts the best thoroughbreds with the stamina and ability to see out the challenge.

The race is a great sporting spectacle and during its 88 year history has developed a rich heritage, becoming one of the highlights of the British and Irish sporting calendar. In the USA, TVG and HRTV give coverage of both the Gold Cup and four day long Cheltenham Festival which runs 15^th – 18^th March in 2011.

There has only been four horses in history that have won the Cheltenham Gold Cup three times and one of those, Golden Miller, actually won it five times and also became the first horse and one of only two ever to have also won a Grand National.

Golden Miller won the Gold Cup for five consecutive years between 1932 and 1936 and also won the 1934 Grand National. He was owned by the highly eccentric Dorothy Paget a self declared man hater and one of the most difficult owners any trainer served. Her very rich family was steeped in thoroughbred racehorse ownership and she owned her own stables in Ireland as well as a stud breeding farm. She in fact owned two other Gold Cup winners, Roman Hackle who won in 1940 and Mont  Tremblant who took the honors in 1952. Read the rest of this entry →

Eddie Arcaro and Citation

The Sports Then and Now May Vintage Athlete of the Month registered the greatest accomplishment in his sport not once, but twice.

Still considered by many to be the greatest jockey in horse racing history, Eddie Arcaro was aboard the winning horse in a record 17 Triple Crown races. In 1941 he guided Whirlaway to the Triple Crown with wins in the Kentucky Derby, Preakness and Belmont Stakes. Seven years later he duplicated the accomplishment aboard Citation. Read the rest of this entry →