John L. Rotz
John L. Rotz (December 16, 1934 – July 12, 2021) was an American Thoroughbred horse race, Thoroughbred horse racing jockey and a World Champion in Western riding competitions. Early career After graduating from Warrensburg-Latham High School in Illinois in 1952, Rotz went to work at Fairmount Park Racetrack in Collinsville, Illinois. After working as a Groom (horses), groom, hot walker, and exercise rider, he began riding professionally in 1953. Nicknamed "Gentleman John" because of his polite demeanor, he gained a reputation for being able to handle temperamental Thoroughbreds. Riding career During a 20-year riding career, Rotz won many of the most important races across the United States. In 1969 and 1970, he won more stakes races than any other jockey in American racing. He earned two wins in the American Classic Races, the first coming in 1962 when he rode Greek Money to victory in the Preakness Stakes. A year earlier, he finished second in the Preakness aboard Globemaster ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Jockey
A jockey is someone who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing. The word "jockey" originated from England and was used to describe the individual who rode horses in racing. They must be light, typically around a weight of 100-120 lb., and physically fit. They are typically self-employed and are paid a small fee from the horse trainer and a percentage of the horse's winnings. Jockeys are mainly male, though there are some well-known female jockeys too. The job has a very high risk of debilitating or life-threatening injuries. Etymology The word is by origin a diminutive of ''jock'', the Northern English or Scots colloquial equivalent of the first name ''John'', which is also used generically for "boy" or "fellow" (compare ''Jack'', ''Dick''), at least since 1529. A familiar instance of the use of the word as a name is in "Jockey of Norfolk" in Shakespeare's ''Richard III''. v. 3, ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Wood Memorial Stakes
The Wood Memorial Stakes is an American flat Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds held annually in April at Aqueduct Racetrack in Ozone Park, Queens, New York. It is run over a distance of 1 1/8 miles (9 furlongs) on dirt. The Wood Memorial has been run as a Grade II event since 2017. It was a Grade I race from 1974 (when grading was first introduced) to 1994 and again from 2002 to 2016. The Wood Memorial is one of the major prep races on the Road to the Kentucky Derby. Between 1930 and 2000, eleven winners of the Wood Memorial went on to win the Kentucky Derby (Gallant Fox, Twenty Grand, Johnstown, Count Fleet, Hoop Jr., Assault, Foolish Pleasure, Bold Forbes, Seattle Slew, Pleasant Colony and Fusaichi Pegasus). Four of them also won the Triple Crown. The most famous loser in the Wood Memorial was Secretariat, who finished third in 1973. The winner of the Wood Memorial has not won the Kentucky Derby since 2000, in part because several became injured in the weeks betwe ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Jim Dandy Stakes
The Jim Dandy Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race. The Grade II race has been held annually since 1964 at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York. The race is open to horses age three over one and one-eighth miles on the dirt. It currently carries a purse of $600,000. Prior to 1971, the race was 1 mile in length. For 1971 only, the distance was decreased to 7 furlongs. The Jim Dandy Stakes is usually run on the first Saturday of the late July Saratoga racing season and is named in honor of the 3-year-old colt, Jim Dandy, who won the 1930 Travers Stakes at odds of 100 to 1, beating Triple Crown winner Gallant Fox. The Jim Dandy Stakes is typically used as a preparatory race for the Travers Stakes. The Jim Dandy was run for the 56th time in 2019. Records Speed record: * miles – 1:47.26 – Louis Quatorze (1996) Most wins by an owner: * 3 - Godolphin Racing LLC (2012, 2020, 2021) * 3 – Henryk de Kwiatkowski (1982, 1985, 1995) * 3 – Melnyk Racing (2 ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Jerome Handicap
The Jerome Stakes is a stakes race for thoroughbred horses run each January at Aqueduct Racetrack. Open to three year olds, the race is run at one mile and carries a purse of $150,000. It is a Road to the Kentucky Derby qualifying race, with the winner receiving 10 points towards qualification for the Kentucky Derby. The Jerome is the second oldest stakes race in the United States behind the Travers Stakes. It is named after Leonard W. Jerome, the grandfather of Winston Churchill and the founder of the old Jerome Park Racetrack in The Bronx. Notable horses that have won the Jerome include inaugural Kentucky Derby winner Aristides in 1875, Fitz Herbert in 1909, Bold Ruler in 1957, Kelso in 1960, Carry Back in 1961 and Fusaichi Pegasus in 2000. Up until 2009 the race was typically held in the fall at Belmont Park, after the major three-year-old classics. Following a hiatus in 2010, the Jerome was run for two years at the end of the Aqueduct Spring meet in April before moving to i ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Black Helen Handicap
The Black Helen Handicap was an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually at Hialeah Park Race Track in Hialeah, Florida, from 1941 through 2001. Open to fillies and mares age three and older, the Grade II event was raced on turf at a distance of a mile and an eighth (9 furlongs). The race was named for Edward R. Bradley's U.S. Racing Hall of Fame mare Black Helen. The inaugural running took place on February 8, 1941, and was won by Sweet Willow at a distance of seven furlongs. The following year the race was run at a mile and an eighth and would remain at that distance for all subsequent editions. Historical notes In 1948 the Black Helen Handicap had a Dead heat for win between Shotsilk and Rampart. It marked a rarity for a dead heat in that Rampart carried the highweight, in the field of ten, and Shotsilk the low weight. Fitz Eugene Dixon Jr.'s Shotsilk would turn out to be the only three-year-old to ever win the race. Bewitch won the 1950 Black Helen Handicap by seven l ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Acorn Stakes
The Acorn Stakes is an American Grade I race at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York for three-year-old Thoroughbred fillies. It is raced on dirt over a distance of one mile with a current purse of $500,000. It is the first leg of the US Triple Tiara and is followed by the Coaching Club American Oaks then the Alabama Stakes. The filly must win all three races to win the Triple Tiara, as well as the third leg of the "National" Triple Tiara (Kentucky Oaks and George E. Mitchell Stakes are the others). The Acorn Stakes was run at Aqueduct Racetrack from 1960 to 1967 and 1969 to 1975. There were two divisions in 1951, 1970 and 1974. There was a dead heat for first place in 1954 and again in 1956. Historic notes The inaugural running of the Acorn Stakes took place on May 16, 1931 and was won by Baba Kenney. The filly was owned by Edward R. Bradley and trained by future U.S. Racing Hall of Fame inductee, Herbert J. Thompson. Gallorette won the 1945 running of the Acorn and went on to ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Toboggan Handicap
The Toboggan Stakes, formerly the Toboggan Handicap, is an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually during the first week of March at Aqueduct Race Track in Queens, New York. Open to horses aged three and older, the Grade III event is contested over at a distance of six furlongs on the dirt and offers a purse of $150,000 added. The 123rd running of The Toboggan Handicap was run in 2016. Before 1896, it was called the Toboggan Slide because it took place on the downhill Eclipse course at Morris Park Racecourse in the Bronx. The Toboggan Slide was not run in 1891 or 1895. The Toboggan Handicap was not run in 1911 and 1912. In 2015, it was run in early February. Since inception, the Toboggan Stakes has been contested at two different distances: * 6 furlongs : 1890–1993, 2005–present * 7 furlongs : 1995–2004,2018 Records Speed record: (at current distance of 6 furlongs) * 1:08.40 – Nance's Lad (1956) Most wins: * 2 – Octagon (1897, 1898) * 2 – Banastar (1899, 1901 ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Man O' War Stakes
The Man o' War Stakes is a Grade I American thoroughbred horse race for horses aged four-years-old and older. It is run over a distance of one and three-eighth miles on turf and is scheduled annually for early May at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. The current purse is $700,000. History The event is named in honor of U.S. Racing Hall of Fame Champion Man o' War who was selected as No. 1 in the Blood-Horse magazine List of the Top 100 U.S. Racehorses of the 20th Century. The inaugural running of the event was on 24 October 1959 at the newly reopened Aqueduct Racetrack as the Man o' War Handicap over a distance of miles. The event attracted 23 entrants thus enabling NYRA to run the event as two split divisions with a record total purse of $225,100. The event attracted some of the finest long distance turf horses including British bred Tudor Era who was first past the post in the 1958 Washington D.C. International at Laurel but was disqualified. Tudor Era would win the Sec ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Ladies Handicap
The Ladies Stakes is a historic American Thoroughbred horse race for Fillies and Mares four years of age and older held annually at Aqueduct Racetrack in Queens, New York. Inaugurated at the Jerome Park Racetrack in 1868, it is the oldest stakes race in the United States exclusively for fillies and mares. An unlisted stakes race, it is currently run on or about New Year's Day and offers a purse of $100,000. From its beginnings in 1868 through 1912 the race was restricted to three-year-old fillies then from 1913 through 1938, it was made open to fillies of any age. Since 1939, it has been open to older fillies and mares. There was no race in 1895 and also none in 1911 and 1912, as a result of the New York State Legislature passage of the Hart–Agnew Law in 1908 which banned wagering and led to the shut down of all racing in the state. In 2006, the race was not run due to the shortage of entrants and as a result of NYRA financial reorganization, neither was it run in 2009. The Lad ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Juvenile Stakes (United States)
The Juvenile Stakes was a Thoroughbred horse race run for 109 years between 1874 and 1984. First run on June 13, 1874, it was an important part of Jerome Park's "Spring Meeting." The race was designed to show which were the top two-year-olds at that point in the calendar. Historical notes The Juvenile Stakes was run at four different tracks: Jerome Park Racetrack (1874–1888) Morris Park Racecourse (1889–1904) Belmont Park (1905–1959, 1968–1973, 1975, 1977–1984) Aqueduct Racetrack (1960–1967, 1974, 1976) A field of fifteen competed in the inaugural edition won by Meco, a colt owned and trained by South Carolina native Thomas Puryear. In 1888, French Park and Fides finished in a dead heat for first. It would remain as the only such occurrence in the 109 runnings of the event. With the implementation of the Graded Stakes system in 1973, for that first year and again in 1974 the Juvenile Stakes was given Grade 3 status. Selected notable winners The 1886 running of th ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Champagne Stakes (United States)
The Champagne Stakes is an American Grade I Thoroughbred horse race for two-year-old horses. The race is run at a distance of one mile on the dirt at Belmont Park in October each year. Although the race is open to both colts and fillies, in practice it is New York's premier race for two-year-old colts and fillies enter the Frizette Stakes instead. The race is a Road to the Kentucky Derby Prep Season qualifying race. The winner receives 10 points toward qualifying for the Kentucky Derby. The race is also a part of the Breeders' Cup Challenge series. The winner automatically qualifies for the Breeders' Cup Juvenile. The race was first run in 1867, and it is the oldest race of its kind in the United States. It was given the same name as the British Champagne Stakes which has been run annually since 1823 at the Doncaster Racecourse in South Yorkshire, England. There was no Champagne Stakes run from 1910 through 1913, due to a legislated ban by the State of New York on parimutuel ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Canadian International Stakes
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. 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 Ro ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |