Stewart Elliott (born March 1, 1965) is an American

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 ...

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 ...

. Elliott 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. He grew up in horse racing; his father was a jockey for many years, his mother rode show horses and was a

riding instructor {{short description, Person whose job it is to teach methods of horse riding A riding instructor is a person whose job it is to teach methods of horse riding (and also horse care) to beginners and improve the intermediate and advanced rider's style ...

, and his uncle owns a racing stable in Canada. At age seven, his family moved to race in

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...

, where they remained for six years before going to the United States. Stewart began riding professionally at age 16, mainly at

Philadelphia Park Racetrack Parx Casino and Racing (formerly Philadelphia Park Racetrack and Casino) is a thoroughbred horse racing venue and the largest casino gaming complex in Pennsylvania. Parx is located in Bensalem Township in Bucks County, northeast of the city of P ...

, a small racetrack in suburban

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

. He has been the racetrack's most successful jockey for a number of years and for the past three seasons has been named Pennsylvania's top rider. On May 13, 2003, he reached a prestigious milestone, riding his 3,000th career winner. On January 18, 2009, he won the 4,000th race of his career at Philadelphia Park. On May 1, 2004, Elliott became the first jockey in twenty-five years to win 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 ...

in his first appearance in the race. His horse,

Smarty Jones Smarty Jones (February 28, 2001) is a champion Thoroughbred racehorse who won the 2004 Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes and came second in the Belmont Stakes. Background Born at Fairthorne Farm in Chester County, Pennsylvania, the horse was ...

, became the first unbeaten Derby winner since

Seattle Slew Seattle Slew (February 15, 1974 – May 7, 2002) was a champion American Thoroughbred horse racing, racehorse who became the tenth winner of the Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing (United States), American Triple Crown (1977). He is one of only ...

in 1977. To add to his victory was Elliott's 10% share of the almost $6 million in purse and bonuses that represented the largest payday for any jockey and horse in racing history. Two weeks later, Elliott rode Smarty Jones to a record-breaking win in the second leg of the

Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing The Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing, often shortened to Triple Crown, is a series of horse races for Thoroughbreds, often restricted to three-year-olds. Winning all three of these Thoroughbred horse races is considered the greatest accomplis ...

, the

Preakness Stakes The Preakness Stakes is an American thoroughbred horse race held on Armed Forces Day which is also the third Saturday in May each year at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland. It is a Grade I race run over a distance of 9.5 furlongs () on ...

. In the

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 ...

, the third leg, Elliott took

out early in the backstretch, and

Birdstone Birdstone (foaled May 16, 2001, in Kentucky) is an American Thoroughbred racehorse best known for winning the 2004 Belmont Stakes and has become a successful sire. On August 28, 2020 Birdstone was pensioned from stud duty to Old Friends Retir ...

passed him late in the race. Some have criticized Elliott's ride, saying he "pushed" the horse too early in the race, but other experts have said: "he was doing the only thing he could do to win the race." During his breakthrough year in 2004, he won 262 races out of 1,363 mounts with earnings of $14,533,061. In 2005, he won 143 races out of 860 mounts with earnings of $5,393,661. On January 11, 2008, Elliott rode four winners on one racecard at

Aqueduct Racetrack Aqueduct Racetrack is a Thoroughbred horse racing facility and casino in the South Ozone Park, Queens, South Ozone Park and Jamaica, Queens, Jamaica neighborhoods of Queens, New York City, United States. Aqueduct is the only racetrack locate ...

. On June 1, 2010, Woodbine Entertainment announced that Elliott had been voted the

Avelino Gomez Memorial Award The Avelino Gomez Memorial Award is a Canadian thoroughbred horse racing honour given annually to a jockey who is Canadian-born, Canadian-raised, or a regular in the country for more than five years, who has made significant contributions to the sp ...

for his contribution to the sport of Thoroughbred racing. In 2017 Stewart Elliott was voted the

George Woolf Memorial Jockey Award The George Woolf Memorial Jockey Award has been presented by Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California, annually since 1950 to the thoroughbred horse racing jockey in North America who demonstrates high standards of personal and professional condu ...

, a prestigious honor voted on by thoroughbred horse racing jockeys in North America. It is given to a jockey who has demonstrated high standards of personal and professional conduct, on and off the racetrack.Santa Anita Racetrack press release - February 24, 2017
/ref> On August 9, 2020, Elliot became the 36th North American jockey to have won more than 5,000 races.

Year-end charts

Stewart_Elliott_at_Los_Alamitos_track_2016_23

References

ABC News Person of the Week - Stewart Elliott

Stewart Elliott at the NTRA
{{DEFAULTSORT:Elliott, Stewart 1965 births Living people American jockeys Animal sportspeople from Ontario Avelino Gomez Memorial Award winners Canadian expatriate sportspeople in the United States Canadian expatriates in Hong Kong Canadian emigrants to the United States Canadian jockeys Sportspeople from Philadelphia Sportspeople from Toronto