Colorado King (foaled 1959) was a South African

Thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed. Thoroughbreds are c ...

racehorse Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic pr ...

who also competed successfully in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. He was Champion Two Year Old (1961/62) and Three Year Old (1962/63) in South Africa, before being sold to race in the United States. Conditioned in South Africa by trainer

Sydney C. Laird Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountains ...

, Colorado King won ten races in including the Cape Guineas, Cape Derby and the

Durban July Handicap The Hollywoodbets Durban July Handicap is a South African Thoroughbred horse race held annually on the first Saturday of July since 1897 at Greyville Racecourse in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal. Raced on turf, the Durban July Handicap is open to horses of ...

. Sold to an American racing partnership led by William R. (Fritz) Hawn, he raced under the Poltex Stable banner in

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

. There, under trainer

Wally Dunn Thomas Wallace Dunn (December 4, 1911 – April 21, 2004) was a Canadian-born Thoroughbred horse trainer. Born in Minitonas, Manitoba, Wally Dunn went to Vancouver, British Columbia, at age seventeen, where he would find work in Thoroughbred hors ...

, Colorado King won six races in 1964 including the

Hollywood Gold Cup The Hollywood Gold Cup Stakes is a Grade I American thoroughbred horse race for horses age three and older over a distance of miles on the dirt held at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California in May. The race currently offers a purse of $400,000. ...

in which he defeated

Native Diver Native Diver (April 16, 1959 – September 13, 1967) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse. Native Diver's nicknames included "the Diver," "The California Comet" and "The Black Horse." He compiled 34 stakes wins throughout his career, but never w ...

, the

American Handicap The American Stakes is a Grade III American thoroughbred horse race for horses age three and older over a distance of one mile on the turf track held at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California in June. The race currently offers a purse of $100, ...

where he equalled the world record for 9

furlong A furlong is a measure of distance in imperial units and United States customary units equal to one eighth of a mile, equivalent to 660 feet, 220 yards, 40 rods, 10 chains or approximately 201 metres. It is now mostly confined to use in hors ...

s and the

Sunset Handicap The Sunset Handicap was an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually during the third week of July at Hollywood Park Racetrack in inglewood, California. The Grade III event is open to horses, age three and up, willing to race one and one-half ...

at a mile and five-eighths by seven lengths. In 1965 he won only once in nine starts before being retired to

stud Stud may refer to the following terms: Animals * Stud (animal), an animal retained for breeding ** Stud farm, a property where livestock are bred Arts and entertainment * Stud (band), a British progressive rock group * The Stud (bar), a gay bar ...

where he met with limited success as a

sire Sire is an archaic respectful form of address to reigning kings in Europe. In French and other languages it is less archaic and relatively more current. In Belgium, the king is addressed as "Sire..." in both Dutch and French. The words "sire" a ...

. {, class="wikitable" style="text-align: center , +Racing Record !Age !Starts !Wins !2nds !3rds , - , At 2 , 7 , 4 , 3 , 0 , - , At 3 , 8 , 6 , 0 , 1 , - , At 5 , 17 , 6 , 0 , 3 , - , At 6 , 9 , 1 , 0 , 2 , - , , 41 , 17 , 3 , 7

References

Colorado King detailed profile

Article on Colorado King by Mark Anthony at SAHorseRacing.comPedigree
*A King Of All : Won Durban July and Derby in SA. Sporting Post. April 4
2015
*Partial statistics
equibase.com
*COAST RACE GOES TO COLORADO KING BY TWO LENGTHS. New York Times. July 19, 196

*Colorado King Takes Sunset Handicap by Seven Lengths. New York Times. July 26, 1964

*Colorado King Takes Coast Handicap and Equals World Mark for 1⅛ Miles. New York Times. July 5, 1964

1959 racehorse births Thoroughbred family 18 Racehorses bred in South Africa Racehorses trained in South Africa Racehorses trained in the United States