Thoroughbred Racing Fan Association, Inc.

News

News

ALL BUT ONE TRIPLE CROWN WINNER RECEIVED THE PRESTIGIOUS HORSE OF THE YEAR AWARD FOR THE YEAR HE WON THE TRIPLE CROWN. NAME HIM!
12/27/2019

 

 

The Horse of the Year awards officially began in 1936 when the Daily Racing Form and the Turf and Sport Digest named its first Horse of the Year –Granville. For the years from 1887 to 1935, the Blood-Horse publication put together a retrospective list. It included two of three Triple Crown winner in those early years---Sir Barton (1919) and Gallant Fox (1930). In the second wave of Horse of the Year winners from 1936 to 1949 all five of the Triple Crown winners won the award –War Admiral (1937), Whirlaway (1941 and 1942), Count Fleet (1943), Assault (1946) and Citation (1948). In the era from 1950 to 1970, the Thoroughbred Racing Association joined the previous phase’s two members, however no horse won the Triple Crown in those 21 years. The current Eclipse Awards officially began in 1971. In that era all four Triple Crown winners were given the esteemed title of Horse of the Year – Secretariat (1972 and 1973), Affirmed (1978 and 1974), American Pharoah (2015) and Justify (2018).  The one Triple Crown winner that did not receive the “Horse of the Year” title was Omaha (1935). Perhaps it was an oversight by the Blood-Horse’s retrospective. Or maybe not.