The Empire City Gold Cup was an 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 ...

first run in 1947 and 1948 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 ...

then at

Jamaica Race Course Jamaica Race Course, also called the Jamaica Racetrack, was an American thoroughbred horse racing facility operated by the Metropolitan Jockey Club in Jamaica, Queens, New York City. History The track opened on April 27, 1903, a day which featu ...

from 1949 through 1953 as a race created for horses age three and older. With its lucrative $100,000 purse, it was promoted as an international event in an effort to attract horses from Europe and South America. Run in October or early November it was contested on dirt at a distance of 1 5/8 miles which made it best suited for stayers.

Winners and Losers

While a short-lived event, the Empire City Gold Cup attracted some of the best horses of the era. The inaugural race in 1947 was won by

Stymie A stymie is an obsolete rule in the sport of golf. It legislated for the situation where a player's ball lay behind or blocked by another player's ball; the blocked player was not afforded relief. In the modern game, the blocking ball is temporar ...

, a future U.S. Racing Hall of Fame inductee who was voted #41 on the

Blood-Horse magazine List of the Top 100 U.S. Racehorses of the 20th Century ''BloodHorse'' is a multimedia news organization covering Thoroughbred racing and breeding that started with a newsletter first published in 1916 as a monthly bulletin put out by the Thoroughbred Horse Association.

. Among the seven starters were two from South America. The following year

Citation A citation is a reference to a source. More precisely, a citation is an abbreviated alphanumeric expression embedded in the body of an intellectual work that denotes an entry in the bibliographic references section of the work for the purpose of ...

came into the 1948 edition of the Empire City Gold Cup as that year's U.S. Triple Crown winner. Citation would be voted that year's U.S. Horse of the Year, become a Hall of Fame member, and be voted #3 on the Blood-Horse magazine List of the Top 100 U.S. Racehorses of the 20th Century. 1952 winner One Count would also go on to earn

American Horse of the Year The American Award for Horse of the Year, one of the Eclipse Awards, is the highest honor given in American thoroughbred horse racing. Because Thoroughbred horse racing in the United States has no governing body to sanction the various awards, "Hor ...

honors that year. In its final running on October 31, 1953,

Crafty Admiral Crafty Admiral (June 6, 1948 – 1972) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse who was the 1952 American Champion Older Male Horse and Leading broodmare sire in North America in 1978. Background A very late foal, Crafty Admiral's dam, Admiral's L ...

, the

American Champion Older Male Horse The title of American Champion Older Dirt Male Horse is an American Thoroughbred horse racing honor awarded annually to a stallion or gelding, four years old and up, for performances on dirt and main track racing surfaces. In 1971, it became part of ...

of 1952, won by 10 Lengths. Prominent horses beaten in the Empire City Gold Cup includes 1946 Triple Crown winner

Assault An assault is the act of committing physical harm or unwanted physical contact upon a person or, in some specific legal definitions, a threat or attempt to commit such an action. It is both a crime and a tort and, therefore, may result in crim ...

was ran third behind winner Stymie and runnerup

Natchez Natchez may refer to: Places * Natchez, Alabama, United States * Natchez, Indiana, United States * Natchez, Louisiana, United States * Natchez, Mississippi, a city in southwestern Mississippi, United States * Grand Village of the Natchez, a site o ...

. Christopher Chenery's

Hill Prince Hill Prince (1947–1970) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse. He was one of the leading American two-year-olds of 1949, alongside Oil Capitol and Middleground. In 1950, he ran fifteen times, winning races including the Preakness Stakes, ...

, the 1950

and a future U.S. Racing Hall of Fame inductee, ran second to Sonny Whitney's

Counterpoint In music, counterpoint is the relationship between two or more musical lines (or voices) which are harmonically interdependent yet independent in rhythm and melodic contour. It has been most commonly identified in the European classical tradi ...

in the 1951 race.

Phalanx The phalanx ( grc, φάλαγξ; plural phalanxes or phalanges, , ) was a rectangular mass military formation, usually composed entirely of heavy infantry armed with spears, pikes, sarissas, or similar pole weapons. The term is particularly use ...

, the 1947

American Champion Three-Year-Old Male Horse The American Champion Three-Year-Old Male Horse is an American Thoroughbred horse racing honor awarded annually in Thoroughbred flat racing. It became part of the Eclipse Awards program in 1971. The award originated in 1936 when both ''Turf & Sport ...

and that year's

Belmont Stakes The Belmont Stakes is an American Grade I stakes race for three-year-old Thoroughbreds run at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. It is run over 1.5 miles (2,400 m). Colts and geldings carry a weight of ; fillies carry . The race, nicknamed Th ...

winner was no match for Citation and finished second by two lengths.

Records

Speed record: * 2:42 3/5 @ 1 miles (1947) Most wins: * no horse won this race more than once 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 ...

: * 2 -

Eddie Arcaro George Edward Arcaro (February 19, 1916 – November 14, 1997), was an American Thoroughbred horse racing Hall of Fame jockey who won more American classic races than any other jockey in history and is the only rider to have won the U.S. Tripl ...

(1948, 1950) * 2 -

Dave Gorman David James Gorman (born 2 March 1971) is an English comedian, presenter, and writer. Gorman began his career writing for comedy series such as ''The Mrs Merton Show'' (1993–1998) and ''The Fast Show'' (1994–1997), and later garnered ac ...

(1951, 1952) Most wins by a trainer: * 2 - Oscar White (1949, 1952) Most wins by an owner: * 2 - Sarah F. Jeffords (1949, 1952)

Winners

References

{{reflist Open long distance horse races Discontinued horse races in New York (state) Belmont Park Jamaica Race Course Recurring sporting events established in 1947 Recurring sporting events disestablished in 1953 1947 establishments in New York (state) 1953 disestablishments in New York (state)