The Jockeys' Guild Inc. is an American

trade association A trade association, also known as an industry trade group, business association, sector association or industry body, is an organization founded and funded by businesses that operate in a specific industry. An industry trade association partic ...

based in Lexington, Kentucky, representing

thoroughbred horse racing 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 ...

and American quarter horse professional jockeys. The organization filed for

Chapter 11 Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code (Title 11 of the United States Code) permits reorganization under the bankruptcy laws of the United States. Such reorganization, known as Chapter 11 bankruptcy, is available to every business, wheth ...

protection from creditors in bankruptcy court in Louisville, Kentucky, on October 12, 2007. Established in

1940 A calendar from 1940 according to the Gregorian calendar, factoring in the dates of Easter and related holidays, cannot be used again until the year 5280. Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January * Januar ...

, the organization's founding members consisted of many of the leading jockeys of the day including

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. Triple ...

Carroll Bierman Carroll M. Bierman (October 22, 1918 – March 22, 1970) was an American Thoroughbred horse racing jockey born in Centralia, Illinois. In 1940, he won the Kentucky Derby on Gallahadion in an upset over heavily favored Bimelech. That Derby ...

, Charley Kurtsinger, Johnny Longden, Don Meade, Maurice Peters, Red Pollard, Sam Renick, Harry Richards, Alfred Robertson, and Ray Workman. The Jockeys' Guild founding board was made up of: * Harry Richards - President * Lester Balaski - 1st Vice President * Eddie Arcaro - 2nd Vice President * Raymond Workman - 3rd Vice President * Irving Anderson - Treasurer On February 24, 2001, the ''Thoroughbred Times'' published an article captioned 'A debt of remembrance', that told the story of the important work by jockey Tommy Luther, that led to the Guild's creation. The story recounted the influence on Luther, when he was part of the horrific circumstances North American jockeys lived under at the time; fellow jockey Earl "Sandy" Graham was killed while racing at

Polo Park Racetrack The Polo Park Racetrack was a Canadian horse racing facility in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Considered one of the finest racetracks in Western Canada, it was built by Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame inductee R. James Speers. The six-furlong track o ...

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 September 1927.

Presidents

* Harry Richards: 1940-1943 *Sterling Young: 1943-1949 *

: 1949-1962 * Sam Boulmetis: 1962-1967 * William Boland: 1967-1969 * Walter Blum: 1969-1975 * Mike Venezia: 1975-1981 *

Bill Shoemaker William Lee Shoemaker (August 19, 1931 – October 12, 2003) was an American jockey. For 29 years he held the world record for total professional jockey victories. Early life Referred to as "Bill", "Willie," and "The Shoe", William Lee Sho ...

: 1981-1989 * Jerry D. Bailey: 1989-1996 * Gary Stevens: 1996-2000 *

Pat Day Patrick Alan "Pat" Day (born October 13, 1953, in Brush, Colorado) is a retired American jockey. He is a four-time winner of the Eclipse Award for Outstanding Jockey and was inducted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 1991 a ...

: 2000-2001 *Tomey Jean Swan: 2001 (Acting) *L. Wayne Gertmenian: 2001-2005 *Darrell Haire: 2005-2006 (Acting) *Dwight Manley: 2006-2007 * John R. Velazquez: 2007–present

L. Wayne Gertmenian

L. Wayne Gertmenian is a

professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an academic rank at universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who professes". Professors ...

economics Economics () is the social science that studies the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and interactions of economic agents and how economies work. Microeconomics analyzes ...

Pepperdine University Pepperdine University () is a private research university affiliated with the Churches of Christ with its main campus in Los Angeles County, California. Pepperdine's main campus consists of 830 acres (340 ha) overlooking the Pacific Ocean and th ...

's Graziadio School of Business and Management. Gertmenian is known for being

sued - A lawsuit is a proceeding by a party or parties against another in the civil court of law. The archaic term "suit in law" is found in only a small number of laws still in effect today. The term "lawsuit" is used in reference to a civil acti ...

for fraud by the Jockeys' Guild after being ousted as president. The Jockeys' Guild alleged in a

civil lawsuit - A lawsuit is a proceeding by a party or parties against another in the civil court of law. The archaic term "suit in law" is found in only a small number of laws still in effect today. The term "lawsuit" is used in reference to a civil actio ...

filed that Gertmenian used his

consulting firm A consulting firm or simply consultancy is a professional service firm that provides expertise and specialised labour for a fee, through the use of consultants. Consulting firms may have one employee or thousands; they may consult in a broad rang ...

and another company owned by a family member to

embezzle Embezzlement is a crime that consists of withholding assets for the purpose of conversion of such assets, by one or more persons to whom the assets were entrusted, either to be held or to be used for specific purposes. Embezzlement is a type ...

funds from the

labor organization A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits (su ...

's members and the

guild A guild ( ) is an association of artisans and merchants who oversee the practice of their craft/trade in a particular area. The earliest types of guild formed as organizations of tradesmen belonging to a professional association. They sometimes ...

health-care plan. A

U.S. House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

subcommittee A committee or commission is a body of one or more persons subordinate to a deliberative assembly. A committee is not itself considered to be a form of assembly. Usually, the assembly sends matters into a committee as a way to explore them more ...

looking at jockey health and welfare issues was sharply critical of Gertmenian's management of the Jockeys' Guild. Congress had concerns about Gertmenian himself, and his tendency to embellish. Gertmenian's resume includes references that he was chief

détente Détente (, French: "relaxation") is the relaxation of strained relations, especially political ones, through verbal communication. The term, in diplomacy, originates from around 1912, when France and Germany tried unsuccessfully to reduce ...

negotiator in the Nixon and Ford administrations, references that could not be confirmed by Congress or the

Department of Defense Department of Defence or Department of Defense may refer to: Current departments of defence * Department of Defence (Australia) * Department of National Defence (Canada) * Department of Defence (Ireland) * Department of National Defense (Philipp ...

. Gertmenian also recorded the audio program "Everything's Negotiable".

References

External links

Jockeys' Guild website
Horse racing organizations in the United States Trade unions in the United States Trade unions established in 1940 Sports trade unions of the United States {{US-trade-union-stub