The Golden Rod Stakes is 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 ...

held annually in late November at

Churchill Downs Churchill Downs is a horse racing complex located on Central Avenue in south Louisville, Kentucky, United States, famed for hosting the annual Kentucky Derby. It officially opened in 1875 and was named for Samuel Churchill, whose family was ...

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...

. A

Grade II In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

event open to two-year-old

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 ...

, it is currently contested on dirt over a distance of miles (8.5 furlongs). The namesake

goldenrod Goldenrod is a common name for many species of flowering plants in the sunflower family, Asteraceae, commonly in reference to the genus ''Solidago''. Several genera, such as ''Euthamia'', were formerly included in a broader concept of the genus ...

is the official flower of the state of

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

Historical notes

The inaugural running of the Golden Rod Stakes took place on October 20, 1910. It was established as a

selling race Sales are activities related to selling or the number of goods sold in a given targeted time period. The delivery of a service for a cost is also considered a sale. The seller, or the provider of the goods or services, completes a sale in r ...

and won by Helen Barbee. Heavy favorite Danger Mark finished sixth in the seven-horse field. It would remain a selling race until 1919 when it became the Golden Rod Handicap. For that year only it was run at one mile (8 furlongs). The

Edward R. Bradley Edward Riley Bradley (December 12, 1859 – August 15, 1946) was an American steel mill laborer, gold miner, businessman and philanthropist. As well as a race track proprietor, he was the preeminent owner and breeder of Thoroughbred racehor ...

filly Busy Signal ran away from 15 competitors and won by 12 lengths. The race remained a handicap event through 1927 when it was placed on hiatus. In 1962 it was revived as the Golden Rod Stakes.

Records

Speed record: * 8.5 furlongs (1¹/16 miles): 1:43.08

Rachel Alexandra Rachel () was a Biblical figure, the favorite of Jacob's two wives, and the mother of Joseph and Benjamin, two of the twelve progenitors of the tribes of Israel. Rachel's father was Laban. Her older sister was Leah, Jacob's first wife. Her aunt ...

(2008) * 6 furlongs: 1:12.40, Edith W. (1913) * 7 furlongs: 1:23.60, Woozem (1966) & Levee Night (1970) 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 ...

: * 4 –

Don Brumfield Donald Alan "Don" Brumfield (born May 24, 1938) is a retired American jockey from Kentucky. During his thirty-five-year career, Brumfield won 4,573 races in 33,222 rides. He retired from racing in 1989. Brumfield was the "track all-time leading r ...

(1963, 1968, 1976, 1981) * 4 –

Julien Leparoux Julien R. Leparoux (born July 15, 1983 in Senlis, Oise, France) is a French Eclipse Award winning jockey currently racing in the United States. He has won seven Breeders' Cup races, including the 2015 Breeders' Cup Mile with Champion Turf Mare T ...

(2007, 2010, 2015, 2017) * Most wins by a trainer: * 5 –

D. Wayne Lukas Darrell Wayne Lukas (born September 2, 1935 in Antigo, Wisconsin) is an American horse trainer and a U.S. Racing Hall of Fame inductee. He has won twenty Breeders' Cup races, received five Eclipse Awards for his accomplishments, and his horses ha ...

(1990, 1994, 1996, 1997, 2003) Most wins by an owner: * 2 – Bwamazon Farm (1963, 1975) * 2 – Hickory Tree Stable (1974, 1976) * 2 –

Claiborne Farm Claiborne Farm is a thoroughbred horse breeding operation near Paris, Kentucky. It was established in 1910 by Arthur B. Hancock, owner of Ellerslie Stud in Albemarle County, Virginia, and has been operated by members of his family ever since. ...

(1983, 2013) * 2 –

Overbrook Farm William T. Young (February 15, 1918 – January 12, 2004) was an American businessman and major owner of thoroughbred racehorses. William T. Young attended the University of Kentucky where he was a member of the Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity. ...

(1990, 1996) * 2 – Naveed Chowhan (2004, 2012) * 2 – Coffeepot Stables (2016, 2018)

Winners

References

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Historical notes

Records

Winners

References

See also