The City of Hope Mile Stakes is a Grade II 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 horses aged three years old or older over the distance of one mile 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 agricult ...

scheduled annually in September at

Santa Anita Park Santa Anita Park is a Thoroughbred racetrack in Arcadia, California, United States. It offers some of the prominent horse racing events in the United States during early fall, winter and in spring. The track is home to numerous prestigious races ...

in Arcadia, California. The event currently carries a purse of $200,000.

History

The event was inaugurated on 4 October 1986 as the Colonel F. W. Koester Handicap at the

Oak Tree Racing Association The Oak Tree Racing Association is an American nonprofit corporation that exists to conduct live thoroughbred horse racing in Southern California. Graded Stakes races at the Oak Tree meet Since Oak Tree Racing moved to Hollywood Park in 2010, some ...

meeting at Santa Anita Park as the eighth race on the racecard and was won by the US Hall of Fame, Charles E. Whittingham trained

Palace Music Joseph Will Oldham (born January 15, 1970) is an American singer-songwriter and actor. From 1993 to 1997, he performed and recorded in collaboration with dozens of other musicians under variations of Palace (Palace, Palace Flophouse, Palace Br ...

who broke the track record for the distance that was set by Pettrax in 20 April 1986. Palace Music in his next start would just fail winning the

Breeders' Cup Mile The Breeders' Cup Mile is a Grade 1 Weight for Age stakes race for thoroughbred racehorses three years old and up, run on a grass course. It has been conducted annually as part of the Breeders' Cup World Championships since the event's incepti ...

finishing a head second to

Last Tycoon Last Tycoon (9 May 1983 – 27 May 2006) was an Irish bred Thoroughbred racehorse best known for winning the Breeders' Cup Mile and as a leading sire in Australia. Background Last Tycoon was bred in Ireland by his owner Richard C. Strauss's Ki ...

. Colonel F. W. Koester was part of

1932 Events January * January 4 – The British authorities in India arrest and intern Mahatma Gandhi and Vallabhbhai Patel. * January 9 – Sakuradamon Incident: Korean nationalist Lee Bong-chang fails in his effort to assassinate Emperor Hiro ...

US Equestrian team, later was the General Manager of the

California Thoroughbred Breeders Association The California Thoroughbred Breeders Association (CTBA), founded in 1937, is a non-profit organization committed to the advancement of thoroughbred breeding and racing in California. It is governed by a board of 16 directors elected by the associati ...

from 1955 to 1969 and was elected into the California Racing Hall of Fame in 1988. In 1989 the event was classified by the American Graded Stakes Committee as Grade III and was upgraded to Grade II status the following year. In 1996 the event was renamed to the Oak Tree Mile Handicap and at the same time was downgraded to Grade III. Between 1996 and 2006 the event had Breeders' Cup incentives which reflected in the name of the event. In 2003 the event was upgraded back to Grade II. In 2013 the name of the event was changed to the City of Hope Stakes in honor of the cancer treatment center in Los Angeles.Arroyo Seco Stakes changed to City of Hope Stakes
In 2017 the event was run as a Black Type event with a much lower purse as the Obviously Mile Stakes. The

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

bred Obviously won this event in 2012 when it was run as the Arroyo Seco Stakes and was fourth in 2013 and was third in 2016.

Records

Time record: * 1:31.84 – No Jet Lag (2013) Margins: * 4 lengths - Double Feint (1987), Urgent Request (IRE) (1996) Most wins: * 2 – Mo Forza (2020, 2021) Most wins by an owner: * 2 – Bardy Farm & OG Boss (2020, 2021) Most wins by a jockey: * 4 – Gary Stevens (1986, 1988, 2000, 2018) Most wins by a trainer: * 6 – Neil D. Drysdale (1989, 1998, 2000, 2004, 2006, 2010)

Winners

''Legend:''

External site

City of Hope Cancer Research Hospital & Cancer Treatment

References

{{reflist, 2 Horse races in California Santa Anita Park Graded stakes races in the United States Grade 2 stakes races in the United States Open mile category horse races Turf races in the United States Recurring sporting events established in 1986 1986 establishments in California

History

Records

Winners

See also

External site

References