The Symbols Of The Kentucky Derby

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The most exciting two minutes in sports. The Kentucky Derby attracts hundreds of thousands of spectators from all over the country. They fill the stands of the Churchill Downs racetrack to watch priceless thoroughbreds race 1.25 miles in a blistering time of only two minutes. Well known traditions were born since the beginning of the derby in the late nineteenth century that have become symbols of the Kentucky Derby. The history of the Kentucky Derby has an unexpected connection to the Lewis and Clark expedition that many people are unaware of. If a horse wins the Kentucky Derby they have the chance to win the most prestigious title in horse racing, the Triple Crown. The Kentucky Derby is one of three races that makes up the Triple Crown. Behind the scenes of all the glory, workers, owners, and jockeys of color had a bigger part in the Kentucky Derby than one would expect. Although the Kentucky Derby began centuries behind the first ever horse race, the history of the race is full of events that began horse racing’s road to fame in the United States. For the last one hundred forty three years, famous horses and riders have graced the Churchill …show more content…

In 1970, the first woman to ride in the Kentucky Derby was Diane Crump where she finished fifteenth. The most recent woman and only the sixth to ride in the Kentucky Derby was Rosie Napravnik in 2013 and 2014. Although women jockeys have not won and rarely ride in the Kentucky Derby, women owners have won the race many times. In 1904, the horse Elwood won the Kentucky Derby. His owner was Laska Durnell, a woman. Other notable Kentucky Derby-winning female owners were Helen Hay Whitney, Elizabeth Arden Graham, Ethel V. Mars, and Penny Chenery, the owner of probably the greatest race horse in United States history, Secretariat, who, in 1973, won the Kentucky Derby in record time and went on to win the Triple Crown that same

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