The True North Stakes is 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 ...

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 ...

for horses aged four years old and older held over a distance of six and half

furlong A furlong is a measure of distance in imperial units and United States customary units equal to one eighth of a mile, equivalent to 660 feet, 220 yards, 40 rods, 10 chains or approximately 201 metres. It is now mostly confined to use in hors ...

s on dirt scheduled annually in early June 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 ...

Elmont, New York Elmont is an unincorporated hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) located in northwestern Hempstead in Nassau County, New York, United States, along its border with the borough of Queens in New York City. The population was 35,265 at the ...

. The event currently carries a purse of $300,000.

History

The True North is named for the winner of the 1945

Fall Highweight Handicap The Fall Highweight Handicap is an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually near the end of November at Aqueduct Racetrack in Queens, New York. Currently run at a distance of 6 furlongs (1,207 m), it is open to horses three years of age and o ...

, W. Deering Howe's,

True North True north (also called geodetic north or geographic north) is the direction along Earth's surface towards the geographic North Pole or True North Pole. Geodetic north differs from ''magnetic'' north (the direction a compass points toward the ...

. The event was inaugurated on 9 July 1979 as the True North Handicap and was won by the longshot Moleolus in a time of 1:10. The event was classified as Grade III in 1982 and upgraded to Grade II in 1985. The only mare to win the event was Gold Beauty in 1993. In winning the 1987 edition of the True North Handicap,

Groovy ''Groovy'' (or, less commonly, ''groovie'' or ''groovey'') is a slang colloquialism popular during the 1950s, '60s and '70s. It is roughly synonymous with words such as "excellent", "fashionable", or "amazing", depending on context. History The ...

earned a

Beyer Speed Figure The Beyer Speed Figure is a system for rating the performance of Thoroughbred racehorses in North America designed in the early 1970s by Andrew Beyer, the syndicated horse racing columnist for The Washington Post. First published in book form in 1 ...

of 134.Beyer, Andrew ''Beyer on Speed: New Strategies for Racetrack Betting'', p.57 (1995) Houghton Mifflin
In 2014 the conditions of the race changed to a stakes race. In 2017 the distance of the race was changed from 6 furlongs to furlongs.

Records

Speed record: * furlongs – 1:14.85 – Catalina Cruiser (2019) * 6 furlongs – 1:07.80 –

(1987) Most wins: * 2 - Firenze Fire (2020, 2021) Most wins by a trainer: * 3 –

William I. Mott William I. "Bill" Mott (born July 29, 1953, in Mobridge, South Dakota) is an American horse trainer, most notable for his work with Cigar. Mott earned the Eclipse Award for Outstanding Trainer in 1995 and 1996. He was inducted into the National ...

(1991, 1993, 1998) * 3 –

Todd Pletcher Todd Pletcher (born June 26, 1967 in Dallas, Texas) is an American thoroughbred horse trainer. He won the Eclipse Award seven times as Trainer of the Year, four of these in consecutive years. His horses Super Saver (2010) and Always Dreaming (20 ...

(2004, 2010, 2015) Margin: * lengths – Trappe Shot (2011) 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 ...

: * 3 –

Jean-Luc Samyn Jean-Luc Samyn (born November 6, 1956 in Bailleul, Nord, France) is a jockey in American Thoroughbred horse racing. The son of a pastry chef, Jean-Luc Samyn was one of three children. At age thirteen, he went to work for the stable of trainer Jo ...

(1979, 1981, 1999) * 3 –

Ángel Cordero Jr. Ángel Tomás Cordero Jr. (born: November 8, 1942) is one of the leading Thoroughbred horse racing jockeys of the late 20th-century and the first Puerto Rican to be inducted into the United States' Racing Hall of Fame. He led all jockeys in win ...

(1987, 1988, 1989) * 3 –

Robbie Davis Robbie Glen Davis (born July 18, 1961 in Pocatello, Idaho) is a retired American Thoroughbred horse racing jockey. Early life Davis grew up in a single parent household forced onto welfare, something that would impact him for the rest of his life ...

(1996, 1997, 2000) * 3 –

Javier Castellano Javier Castellano (born October 23, 1977, in Maracaibo, Zulia State, Venezuela) is a jockey in American Thoroughbred horse racing. Castellano began his riding career in 1996 at Santa Rita and La Rinconada racecourses in Venezuela. In June 1997 he ...

(2012, 2015, 2018) Most wins by an owner: * 2 – Seymour Cohn (1985, 1999) * 2 – Mr. Amore Stables (2020, 2021)

Winners

''Notes:''
‡ Filly or Mare
§ Ran as part of an entry

References

{{reflist, 2 Grade 2 stakes races in the United States Graded stakes races in the United States Open sprint category horse races Horse races in New York (state) Recurring sporting events established in 1979 Belmont Park 1979 establishments in New York (state)

History

Records

Winners

See also

References