The Athenia Stakes is a Grade III American

Thoroughbred horse race Thoroughbred racing is a sport and industry involving the racing of Thoroughbred horses. It is governed by different national bodies. There are two forms of the sport – flat racing and jump racing, the latter known as National Hunt racing in ...

for

fillies A filly is a female horse that is too young to be called a mare. There are two specific definitions in use: *In most cases, a ''filly'' is a female horse under four years old. *In some nations, such as the United Kingdom and the United States, t ...

and

mares A mare is an adult female horse or other equine. In most cases, a mare is a female horse over the age of three, and a filly is a female horse three and younger. In Thoroughbred horse racing, a mare is defined as a female horse more than four y ...

age three-years-old and older run over at a distance of a mile and an eighth on the

turf Sod, also known as turf, is the upper layer of soil with the grass growing on it that is often harvested into rolls. In Australian and British English, sod is more commonly known as ''turf'', and the word "sod" is limited mainly to agricultu ...

held annually in October at

Belmont Park Belmont Park is a major thoroughbred horse racing facility in the northeastern United States, located in Elmont, New York, just east of the New York City limits. It was opened on May 4, 1905. It is operated by the non-profit New York Racin ...

Elmont, New York Elmont is an unincorporated hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) located in northwestern Hempstead in Nassau County, New York, United States, along its border with the borough of Queens in New York City. The population was 35,265 at the ...

. The event offers a purse of $175,000.

History

The Athenia Stakes is named in honor of Hal Price Headley's filly Athenia, who won in 1946 the

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 ra ...

over the distance of miles as well as the Misty Isle Handicap and Artful Handicap at

Washington Park Race Track Washington Park Race Track was a popular horse racing venue in the Chicago metropolitan area from 1884 until 1977. It had two locations during its existence. It was first situated in what is the current location of the Washington Park Subdiv ...

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

. Athenia also was the granddam of

Sir Ivor Sir Ivor (May 5, 1965 – November 10, 1995) was an American-bred, Irish-trained champion Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. In a career which lasted from July 1967 to October 1968 he ran thirteen times and won eight races. He won major races in ...

, the 1968 Horse of the Year in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

and Leading broodmare sire in Britain & Ireland in 1983. The inaugural running of the event was on 13 September 1978 as The Athenia Handicap for three-year-old fillies at miles in distance and was won by the Terpsichorist who was trained by the US Hall of Fame trainer

Woody Stephens Woody Stephens (September 1, 1913 – August 22, 1998) was an American Thoroughbred horse racing Hall of Fame trainer. Biography Born Woodford Cefis Stephens in Stanton, Kentucky, he had a younger brother named William Ward Stephens who also b ...

and ridden by

Michael Venezia Michael Joseph Venezia (May 5, 1945 – October 13, 1988) was an American Thoroughbred horse racing jockey who was killed in a horse racing accident. Early life Venezia was born on May 5, 1945, in Brooklyn, New York City. Career Venezia had ...

in a time of 2:03. The event continued to be restricted to three-year-old fillies until 1983. In 1980 the event was classified as Grade III. In 2005 the event was moved to the main track due to the inclement weather and consequently was downgraded. The race has been held at

Aqueduct Racetrack Aqueduct Racetrack is a Thoroughbred horse racing facility and casino in the South Ozone Park, Queens, South Ozone Park and Jamaica, Queens, Jamaica neighborhoods of Queens, New York City, United States. Aqueduct is the only racetrack locate ...

several times with the last such running in 2004. The event was raced in split divisions in 1982 and 2001. The event has been contested at various distances over its history with the current distance of miles being reinstated in 2021. The event in 2022 was moved to

due to infield tunnel and redevelopment work at

Records

Speed record: * miles: 1:39.94 – Pianist (2013) * miles: 1:47.11 – Rapid Selection (1997) * miles: 2:00.40 – Love Sign (1980), De La Rosa (1981) * miles: 2:13.20 – Capades (1989) Margins: *20 lengths – Rose Crescent (1983) Most wins: * 2 – Babae (2001, 2002) Most wins by an owner: * 2 –

Rokeby Stables Rokeby Stables was an American thoroughbred racehorse breeding farm in Upperville, Virginia, involved with both steeplechase and flat racing. The operation was established in the late 1940s by Paul Mellon (1907–1999) who won the Eclipse Award ...

(1983, 1988) * 2 –

Harbor View Farm Louis Elwood Wolfson (January 28, 1912 – December 30, 2007) was an American financier, a convicted felon, and one of the first modern corporate raiders, labeled by ''Time'' as such in a 1956 article.Juddmonte Farms Juddmonte Farms is a horse breeding farm, owned until his death on 12th January 2021 by Prince Khalid bin Abdullah of Saudi Arabia.National Thoroughbred Racing Association"Juddmonte Farms, Inc.", profile. Retrieved October 16, 2007. Overview Ju ...

(1991, 2021) Most wins by a

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 ...

: * 6 –

Jorge F. Chavez Jorge F. Chavez (born November 25, 1961, in Callao, Peru) is a jockey in American Thoroughbred horse racing. Chavez began his career in horse racing in 1982 in his native Peru and by 1987 was his country's leading rider. In April 1988 he emigrated ...

(1994, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2005) Most wins by a trainer: * 7 – Chad C. Brown (2013, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2020, 2021, 2022)

Winners

''Legend:''

:See also

List of American and Canadian Graded races The List of American and Canadian Graded races is a list of Thoroughbred horse races in the United States and Canada that meet the graded stakes standards maintained by the American Graded Stakes Committee of the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders ...

References

{{reflist, 2 Graded stakes races in the United States Grade 3 stakes races in the United States Horse races in New York (state) Mile category horse races for fillies and mares Recurring sporting events established in 1978 Belmont Park 1978 establishments in New York (state) Turf races in the United States