David Cotey (born February 18, 1948) is a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

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 trainer A horse trainer is a person who tends to horses and teaches them different disciplines. Some of the responsibilities trainers have are caring for the animals' physical needs, as well as teaching them submissive behaviors and/or coaching them for e ...

. Near the beginning of the 1990s, he formed the '' nom de course'' Dominion Bloodstock to purchase and race Thoroughbreds with partners Hugh Galbraith and Derek Ball. In 2001, he began his training career, earning his first win on May 25 then a few months later the

Manitoba Derby The Manitoba Derby is a Canadian Thoroughbred horse race run annually at the beginning of August at Assiniboia Downs in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from ...

Assiniboia Downs Assiniboia Downs is a Canadian horse race track on of land located in the Winnipeg suburb of St. James-Assiniboia. It is operated by the Manitoba Jockey Club and is the site of the annual Manitoba Derby. The track is located on the western edg ...

Winnipeg, Manitoba Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749,6 ...

. In 2002, he won the

Canadian Derby The Canadian Derby is a Canadian Thoroughbred horse race run annually at the Century Mile Racetrack and Casino in Leduc County, Alberta. A Grade III event held in August, it is open to three-year-old horses and is raced on dirt over a distance of ...

Northlands Park Northlands Park was the "Alberta A circuit" horse racing track at Northlands in Edmonton, Alberta. The horse racing season generally consisted of a spring harness (Standardbred) meet from February/March, a Thoroughbred meet from May/June to Sep ...

Edmonton Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city ancho ...

, Alberta. Cotey was born in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

, Canada.

Mine That Bird

In 2008, Cotey conditioned his second

Sovereign Award {{refimprove, date=October 2021 The Sovereign Award is given annually since 1975 by the Jockey Club of Canada to the outstanding horses and people in Canadian Thoroughbred racing. The most prestigious award for horses is Sovereign Horse of the Y ...

winner, a horse named

Mine That Bird Mine That Bird (foaled May 10, 2006) is a champion American Thoroughbred racehorse who won the 2009 Kentucky Derby at 50-1 odds and came second in the Preakness Stakes and third in the Belmont Stakes. He had earnings of $2,228,637 and was inducte ...

he purchased for $9,500.(His first being Lady Shari who won the Top Three Year Old Filly category in 2002.) Raced as a partnership with two other investors, while maintaining a half-interest for himself, Cotey conditioned the

gelding A gelding is a castrated male horse or other equine, such as a pony, donkey or a mule. Castration, as well as the elimination of hormonally driven behavior associated with a stallion, allows a male equine to be calmer and better-behaved, makin ...

for racing. At age two, Mine That Bird raced at

Woodbine Racetrack Woodbine Racetrack is a race track for Thoroughbred horse racing in the Etobicoke area of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Owned by Woodbine Entertainment Group, Woodbine Racetrack manages and hosts Canada's most famous race, the King's Plate. The track ...

where he won four of six starts. Jockey

Chantal Sutherland Chantal Sutherland (born February 23, 1976, in Winnipeg, Manitoba) is a Canadian model, television personality and jockey in North American Thoroughbred horse racing. She is referred to as the Danica Patrick of horse racing. She is known for her ap ...

rode him to victory in the

Silver Deputy Stakes The Silver Deputy Stakes is a Thoroughbred horse race held annually during the fourth week of August at Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Open to two-year-old horses, it is contested over a distance of six and one half furlongs on P ...

and the

Swynford Stakes Swynford Stakes is a discontinued Canadian Thoroughbred horse race held annually from 1956 through 2016. It was first run at Greenwood Raceway as a race for horses aged three and older. In 1967 it was moved to Woodbine Racetrack where it was change ...

then, after she and the horse won the

Grey Stakes The Grey Stakes is a Canadian Thoroughbred horse race held annually during the first week of October at Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto. A Grade III, it is open to two-year-old horses and is raced on dirt at a distance of miles. Since 2006, the d ...

on October 11, 2008, Cotey and his partners accepted a $400,000 offer from the

New Mexico ) , population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano) , seat = Santa Fe , LargestCity = Albuquerque , LargestMetro = Tiguex , OfficialLang = None , Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ker ...

partnership of Double Eagle Ranch and Bueno Suerte Equine. Mine That Bird was subsequently voted the 2008 Canadian Champion 2-yr-old Male Horse. David Cotey had believed in Mine That Bird so much that he nominated him for the

Breeders' Cup Juvenile The Breeders' Cup Juvenile is a Thoroughbred horse race for 2-year-old colts and geldings raced on dirt. It is held annually in late October or early November at a different racetrack in the United States or Canada as part of the Breeders' Cup ...

and the

Kentucky Derby The Kentucky Derby is a horse race held annually in Louisville, Kentucky, United States, almost always on the first Saturday in May, capping the two-week-long Kentucky Derby Festival. The competition is a Grade I stakes race for three-year ...

. For his new owners, on May 2, 2009, Mine That Bird won the United States' most prestigious race, the

. In the post race ceremony, winning trainer Chip Woolley said: "A guy named Dave Cotey in Canada is the guy who really qualified this horse to be here. He deserves a lot of the credit and deserves to be here.

References

David Cotey's biography at Woodbine Entertainment

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cotey, David 1948 births Living people Canadian racehorse trainers Sportspeople from Toronto Toronto Maple Leafs draft picks