Monday, August 23, 2010
Contact: Jenny Kellner
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – The training title at Saratoga Race Course, one of the most coveted in the sport of horse racing, will be named in honor of Hall of Famer H. Allen Jerkens, himself a four-time leading trainer at the Spa.
“Mr. Jerkens epitomizes the highest standards any horseman can aspire to and NYRA is extremely pleased to be able to name racing’s most prestigious training title after him,” NYRA Executive VP and COO Harold G. Handel said.
Jerkens, who was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1975 at the age of 45, then the youngest trainer to be so honored, won his first of three consecutive training titles in 1971, saddling 12 winners during the 24-day meet.
“The Chief” won again in 1972 with 19 winners, which remained a modern-day record until broken by Bill Mott, who sent out 20 winners in 34-day meet in 996, and took his third in 1973 with 14 winners.
In 1978 Jerkens tied for the lead at
Among the many Grade 1 stakes winners the 81-year-old Jerkens has saddled at Saratoga are Classy Mirage, who won the 1995 Ballerina; Shine Again, a two-time winner of the Ballerina in 2001-02; November Snow, who won the Test and the Alabama in 1992; Sky Beauty, winner of the 1993 Alabama, and the 1994 Go for Wand, and Society Selection, who in 2004 also won the Test and the Alabama.
Jerkens, however, is equally famous for his contribution to
“The Chief” was also known for the remarkable feat of defeating five-time Horse of the Year Kelso three separate times with his charge Beau Purple, twice in 1962 (at Aqueduct and Belmont Park) and once in 1963 (at Hialeah).
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