The Man o' War Cup, originally the Kenilworth Gold Cup, [1] is a solid gold trophy that commemorates the winners of the Travers Stakes, held each August at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York, United States. Since 1936, Winners of the Travers, affectionately called the "Mid-Summer Derby" have their name inscribed on the original and receive a gold-plated replica of the Cup.
The Cup is named after the 1920 winner of the Stakes race, Man o' War. Man o' War went on to defeat the famed Sir Barton, the first winner of the American Triple Crown, at a special match race at Kenilworth Park in Windsor, Ontario, Canada. It was for that race that Samuel D. Riddle received the trophy, which was later donated to Saratoga by Mrs. Sam (Elizabeth) Riddle in 1936. William Woodward's Granville won the 1936 Travers Stakes and was the first to be presented with the Cup. [2] The cup was designed by Tiffany & Co. for Abe Orpen, owner and manager of Kenilworth, at a cost of $5,000, for the famous match race.
Each year the original gold trophy is presented by a member of the Riddle family and either the Governor or Lt. Governor of the State of New York. A replica is made each year and that gold-plated smaller version of the permanent trophy is given for permanent possession to the owners of the winning horse.
The Belmont Stakes is an American Grade I stakes race for three-year-old Thoroughbreds run at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. It is run over the worldwide classic distance of 1+1⁄2 miles. Colts and geldings carry a weight of 126 pounds (57 kg); fillies carry 121 pounds (55 kg). The race, nicknamed The Test of the Champion, The Test of Champions and The Run for the Carnations, is the traditional third and final leg of the Triple Crown. It is usually held on the first or second Saturday in June, five weeks after the Kentucky Derby and three weeks after the Preakness Stakes. The 1973 Belmont Stakes and Triple Crown winner Secretariat holds the track record of 2:24.
War Admiral was a champion American Thoroughbred racehorse who is the fourth winner of the American Triple Crown. He was also the 1937 Horse of the Year and well known as the rival of Seabiscuit in the "Match Race of the Century" in 1938. War Admiral won 21 of his 26 starts with earnings of $273,240 and was the leading sire in North America for 1945. He was also an outstanding broodmare sire whose influence is still felt today in descendants such as Triple Crown winners American Pharoah and Justify.
Man o' War was an American Thoroughbred racehorse who is widely regarded as one of the greatest racehorses of all time. Several sports publications, including The Blood-Horse, Sports Illustrated, and the Associated Press, voted Man o' War as the best American racehorse of the 20th century. During his racing career, just after World War I, Man o' War won 20 of 21 races and $249,465 in purses. He was the unofficial 1920 American horse of the year and was honored with Babe Ruth as the outstanding athlete of the year by The New York Times. He was inducted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 1957. On March 29, 2017, the museum opened a special exhibit in his honor, "Man o' War at 100".
A trophy is a tangible, durable reminder of a specific achievement, serving as recognition or evidence of merit. Trophies are most commonly awarded for sporting events, ranging from youth sports to professional level athletics. Additionally, trophies are presented for achievements in Academic, Arts and Entertainment, Business, Military, Professional awards, Community Service, Hunting, and Environmental accomplishments. In many contexts, especially in sports, medals are often given out either as the trophy or along with more traditional trophies.
Saratoga Race Course is a Thoroughbred horse racing track located on Union Avenue in Saratoga Springs, New York, United States. Opened in 1863, it is often considered to be the oldest major sporting venue of any kind in the U.S. It is the fourth oldest racetrack after Pleasanton Fairgrounds Racetrack (1858), Freehold Raceway (1854) and Fair Grounds Race Course (1852).
The Travers Stakes is an American Grade I Thoroughbred horse race held at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York. It is nicknamed the "Midsummer Derby" and is the third-ranked race for American three-year-olds according to international classifications, behind only the Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes. First held in 1864, it is the oldest stakes race in the United States specifically for 3-year-olds, and was named for William R. Travers, the president of the old Saratoga Racing Association. His horse, Kentucky, won the first running of the Travers. The race was not run in 1896, 1898, 1899, 1900, 1911, and 1912. From 1943-5, it was run at Belmont Park instead of Saratoga due to the war.
The Jockey Club Gold Cup, established in 1919, is a thoroughbred flat race open to horses of either gender three-years-old and up. It has traditionally been the main event of the fall meeting at Belmont Park, just as the Belmont Stakes is of the spring meeting and the Travers Stakes is of the summer meeting at Saratoga. The past winners of the Gold Cup are a veritable who's who of award-winning Hall of Fame horses, including Easy Goer, Man o' War, Cigar, Skip Away, Curlin, Slew o' Gold, John Henry, Affirmed, Forego, Shuvee, Damascus, Buckpasser, Kelso, Sword Dancer, Nashua, Citation, Whirlaway and War Admiral. Despite the current $1,250,000 purse and Grade 1 status, the stature of the race has suffered somewhat in recent years thanks to the emergence of the Breeders' Cup Classic held not long afterward, as well as a change in distance to 1+1⁄4 miles in 1990, reducing its distinctiveness.
The Woodlawn Vase is an American trophy given annually to the winning owner of the Preakness Stakes at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland.
The Whitney Stakes is an American Grade 1 stakes race for Thoroughbred racehorses four years of age and older run at a distance of 1+1⁄8 miles. The current purse is $1,000,000.
Longfellow (1867–1893) was an American Thoroughbred Racing horse and sire.
Awesome Again was a Canadian Thoroughbred racehorse and stallion. As a three-year-old, he won the Queen's Plate in Canada and the Jim Dandy Stakes in the United States. He was undefeated at age four, scoring his biggest win in the Breeders' Cup Classic after winning the Stephen Foster Handicap, Saratoga Breeders' Cup Handicap, Hawthorne Gold Cup Handicap and Whitney Handicap. He was inducted into the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame in 2001.
The Grand Union Hotel Stakes was an American Thoroughbred horse race run at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York. A sprint race, it was open to two-year-old horses and run on dirt over a distance of six furlongs.
Richard Thornton Wilson Jr. was an American investment banker and capitalist who was a prominent figure in thoroughbred horse racing in the early decades of the 20th century.
Andrew Schuttinger was an American jockey, trainer and owner in the sport of thoroughbred horse racing. A highly successful jockey, Andy Schuttinger won numerous important races including the Travers Stakes, Jockey Club Gold Cup, and what would become the second leg of the U.S. Triple Crown series, the Preakness Stakes. Among the many top horses he rode was Man o' War, as well as two-time American Champion Filly, Milkmaid, the 1914 American Horse of the Year and a Hall of Fame inductee, Roamer, and another Horse of the Year in 1917, Old Rosebud,
Louis C. Feustel was an American Thoroughbred horse racing Hall of Fame trainer best known as the trainer of Man o' War.
The Kentucky Derby Trophy is a set of four trophies that are awarded to the winning connections of America's most famous race: the grade one $3,100,000 Kentucky Derby. The owner receives a gold trophy while the trainer, the jockey and the breeder win a silver half size replica of the main gold trophy. The trophy itself has been run for since the 50th running of the Kentucky Derby in 1924. Churchill Downs Race Course of Louisville, Kentucky has annually presented a gold trophy to the winning owner of the famed "Run for the Roses."
The August Belmont Trophy is awarded annually to the winning owner of the Belmont Stakes now run at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. The silver bowl, created by Paulding Farnham in 1896–97, was awarded to the 1896 Belmont Stakes winner upon its completion. The trophy remained with the Belmont family until 1926 when they donated it as a perpetual trophy, and since that time has been presented to the winning owner of the race for ceremonial purposes only. A silver plate is inscribed and given to the winning owner to keep.
The Wilson Handicap was an American Thoroughbred horse race run from 1930 through 1958. Inaugurated as the Wilson Stakes at the Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York, it was named in honor of the late Richard Thornton Wilson Jr., a prominent Thoroughbred owner and president of Saratoga Race Course.
The Grand Slam of Thoroughbred racing is an informal name for winning four major Thoroughbred horse races in one season in the United States. The term has been applied to two configurations of races, both of which include the races of the Triple Crown—the Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes and Belmont Stakes—and either the Travers Stakes or the Breeders' Cup Classic as the final race.
Kenilworth Park Racetrack was a horse racing racetrack just outside Windsor, Ontario, Canada. It was owned by Toronto businessmen Abe Orpen, Charles Vance Millar, H. D. Brown and Thomas Hare. Orpen also owned Dufferin Park Racetrack and Long Branch Racetrack. It was notable for a match race between horses Man o' War and Triple Crown winner Sir Barton in 1920. The track operated from September 1916 to 1935. It was one of three racetracks that operated in the Windsor area while horse racing in Michigan, specifically Detroit, was banned. The track operated for only two years after horse race betting in Michigan was legalized in 1933.