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Started by R McCartney; Last updated Dec 26, 07 1:06 PM CST by D Lim | View history

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Horse Racing

Irreparably tied with gambling, the so-called Sport of Kings is the second most popular spectator sport in America (after baseball)

Stories

Stories 21 - 40 of 47

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May 2008
- Owner Haunted by Derby Filly's 'Horrible' Death
  
  Palm Beach Post | May 6, 08 3:49 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Eight Belles' owner is still shocked and saddened by the death of his filly, put down at the end of the Kentucky Derby—but believes she belonged in the race, reports the Palm Beach Post . Rick Porter switched from celebrating his horse's thrilling second-place finish to mourning her death within minutes. "It's the bottom of the barrel," he said yesterday. "It's just a horrible feeling." More »
- Eight Belles' Trainer Defends Jockey's Conduct
  
  Associated Press | May 5, 08 11:34 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - The trainer of euthanized filly Eight Belles adamantly defended the way jockey Gabriel Saez handled the Kentucky Derby runner-up. In an interview with The Associated Press on Monday, Larry Jones said Saez applied the whip only to prevent Eight Belles from crashing into the rail. More »
- PETA Cries Foul Over Filly's Death
  
  Lexington Herald-Leader | May 5, 08 10:44 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - PETA is calling for broad reforms in horse racing after the second-place finisher in Saturday's Kentucky Derby broke her two front legs and was immediately euthanized, reports the Lexington Herald-Leader. PETA is calling for horses to begin training at their third birthdays, rather than their second, and also for synthetic surfaces on all racetracks, which offer less of a pounding to the animals' legs. More »
- 'Moral Crisis' Plagues Horse Racing
  
  Washington Post | May 4, 08 9:45 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - NBC cut away from Eight Belles’ devastating breakdown and euthanasia at Churchill Downs yesterday, but we need to take a good hard look at the very real cost of the sport of kings, writes Sally Jenkins in the Washington Post. Eight Belles is a primetime example of the average two horses per day that suffer career-ending injuries on the track—the result of years of breeding for speed, without the requisite sturdiness. More »
- Filly Euthanized at Derby
  
  Associated Press | May 3, 08 9:54 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Eight Belles, the filly who crossed the wire 4 3/4 lengths behind winner Big Brown to take second in the Kentucky Derby today, collapsed with two broken front ankles and was euthanized on the track. The first filly since 1999 to run in the Derby appeared to be fine as she galloped out around the first turn. "When we passed the wire I stood up," said distraught jockey Gabriel Saez. "She started galloping funny. I tried to pull her up. That's when she went down." More »
- Big Brown Wins Kentucky Derby
  
  NBC Sports | May 3, 08 5:53 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Favorite Big Brown outran a 20-horse field today and claimed the Kentucky Derby by a solid 5 lengths, NBC Sports reports. But tragedy struck at the finish line for runner-up Eight Belles, which broke two ankles and had to be euthanized on the track. For unbeaten Derby runner Big Brown, a 5-2 favorite in the $2 million race, it was a fourth consecutive victory. More »
- Derby Trainer Finds Redemption
  
  USA Today | May 2, 08 2:22 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Ten years ago, Richard Dutrow Jr. was living in a racetrack barn. Disowned by his dad, renowned horse trainer Dick Dutrow, he was a drug-addicted mess. “I was living fast,” Dutrow tells USA Today. “I got myself into all sorts of nickel-and-dime scrapes.” Now, Dutrow is the trainer of Big Brown, the oddsmakers’ favorite in tomorrow's Kentucky Derby. More »
- For Racing's Blue Bloods, It's Thin Blood
  
  Wall Street Journal | May 2, 08 12:08 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - The only race Native Dancer ever lost was the 1953 Kentucky Derby, but in industry circles he is best known as the most valuable sire ever. All 20 horses in this year's Derby are descendants of Native Dancer, as is about 75% of the thoroughbred population. But with those champion genes come some drawbacks, writes the Wall Street Journal . More »
- Derby Fave Big Brown Saddled With Outside Post
  
  Boston Herald | May 1, 08 9:45 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Trainer Richard Dutrow Jr. is positive his colt Big Brown will win the Kentucky Derby, and the odds-makers agree, pegging Big Brown as a 3-1 morning-line favorite. Never mind that the colt is starting from the deadly 20th position, has had front hoof problems, and has, in Dutrow, a controversial trainer who’s been suspended multiple times for rules violations. More »
April 2008
- You Can Lead a Horse to Mares, But You Can't Make Him Sire
  
  New York Times | Apr 28, 08 9:34 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - War Emblem was a champion on the track, winning the 2002 Kentucky Derby, but as a sire, the racehorse is nowhere near as surefooted. Though surrounded by mares, War Emblem hasn't produced a live foal since 2005, and in more than five years at Shadai Stallion Station in Japan has mated only 70 times, the New York Times reports. More »
- Monba, Cowboy Cal Run 1-2 in Blue Grass
  
  Associated Press | Apr 12, 08 9:02 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Todd's squad came through in the nick of time at Keeneland. Down to perhaps his last chance to return to the Kentucky Derby, trainer Todd Pletcher now has two contenders after Monba beat stablemate Cowboy Cal by a neck in the Blue Grass Stakes today. "I was hoping for a dead heat at the end," said Pletcher, who last year saddled a record-tying five Derby starters. More »
- Kentucky Derby Has Full Field, Few Contenders
  
  Los Angeles Times | Apr 8, 08 12:21 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - When the gates open at Churchill Downs on May 3 a full field will start out hoping to win the Kentucky Derby, but only a small handful are considered to have a realistic shot at victory. Pyro, Big Brown and Colonel John are the only horses of the 20 3-year-olds entered who appear ready to win the race, reports the Los Angeles Times . More »
December 2007
- Winningest Horse Trainer Dead at 72
  
  Blood-Horse (Ky.) | Dec 26, 07 4:19 PM CST
  
  (Newser) - Dale Baird, the trainer with the most wins in the history of horse racing, died Sunday in a car accident at age 72. Baird racked up 9,445 wins—no other trainer even has 7,000—in a storied career at the West Virginia racetrack now known as Mountaineer. Despite his success, Baird remained a modest trainer who ran mostly claimers, reports Kentucky's Blood-Horse . More »
- Big Stud Fees ≠ Great Racers
  
  BBC | Dec 19, 07 12:29 PM CST