 |
Trevor Denman | |
|---|---|
| Born | September 24, 1952 |
| Sports commentary career | |
| Sport | Thoroughbred horse racing |
Trevor Denman (born 24 September 1952) is a South African American sportscaster and public-address announcer specializing in Thoroughbred horse racing.
|
Trevor Denman | |
|---|---|
| Born | September 24, 1952 |
| Sports commentary career | |
| Sport | Thoroughbred horse racing |
Trevor Denman (born 24 September 1952) is a South African American sportscaster and public-address announcer specializing in Thoroughbred horse racing.
Denman was born in Germiston, Gauteng, South Africa. A part-time jockey and exercise rider, he started as a race caller in his native South Africa in 1971 at age 18. [1] He called two races at Santa Anita Park in 1983 and was hired that year as the announcer of the track's Oak Tree meet. He was named Santa Anita's permanent announcer the following year. [2] He has also called races at Del Mar Racetrack, Pimlico Race Course, Laurel Park Racecourse, Atlantic City Race Course, and Hollywood Park Racetrack.
In December 2015, Denman announced that he would be retiring as Santa Anita's race caller after 33 years. He plans to continue calling races at Del Mar, while spending the rest of the time either on his Minnesota farm or traveling. [2]
He is best known for the phrase "And away they go...", spoken as the horses emerge from the starting gate. [3] Some other phrases that Denman has coined are popular with racing fans, such as "scraping the paint", used to describe a horse who is saving ground (running very close to the inner rail). Another is "they would need to sprout wings to catch ______ ..." when a horse is leading by an insurmountable margin in the stretch. A similar phrase used in the same context is "he's [or she's] out here moving like a winner..." "______ looks like he jumped in at the quarter pole..." is used when a horse comes from far back and is running so fast as to give the impression that he has only just started to run. Finally, another well known Denman phrase is, "_________ is coming like an express train!" This phrase is used when a horse is running right by leading horses in the stretch. He owns a three-year-old filly in South Africa, named Top Twenty, trained by Paul Lafferty.
Denman was the voice of the Breeders' Cup when it aired on ESPN. He replaced Tom Durkin, who had been the race caller since the inception. [4]
During the 2009 Breeders' Cup Classic, Denman made perhaps his most famous call when undefeated Zenyatta came from behind to win the race. Denman called, "Zenyatta has a lot, a lot of ground to make up.... If she wins this she will be a super horse." Denman delivered this call as Zenyatta took the lead. "Zenyatta's come to the outside. Zenyatta coming, flying on the grandstand side... THIS, IS, UN-BELIEVABLE!"
In the 1989 comedy movie Let It Ride starring Richard Dreyfuss and Teri Garr, Denman is the track announcer that is heard in many of the racetrack scenes that took place at Hialeah Park in Hialeah, Florida. Trevor Denman was also the announcer in the movie Racing Stripes during the race.[ citation needed ]
Denman was the unnamed race announcer in the animated television show The Simpsons episode #239, aired originally in February 2000, entitled Saddlesore Galactica . He had a recurring role in the HBO series Luck , in his real-life job at Santa Anita.[ citation needed ]
Denman also makes an appearance in a Verizon commercial.[ citation needed ]
Santa Anita Park is a Thoroughbred racetrack in Arcadia, California, United States. It offers some of the prominent horse racing events in the United States during early fall, winter and in spring. The track is home to numerous prestigious races including both the Santa Anita Derby and the Santa Anita Handicap as well as hosting the Breeders' Cup in 1986, 1993, 2003, 2008, 2009, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2019, and 2023. In 1984, Santa Anita was the site of equestrian events at the 1984 Olympics. Since 2011, the Stronach Group are the current owners.
The Breeders' Cup World Championships is an annual series of Grade I Thoroughbred horse races, operated by Breeders' Cup Limited, a company formed in 1982. From its inception in 1984 through 2006, it was a single-day event; starting in 2007, it expanded to two days. All sites have been in the United States, except in 1996, when the races were at the Woodbine Racetrack in Canada.
The Breeders' Cup Classic is a Grade I Weight for Age thoroughbred horse race for 3-year-olds and older run at a distance of 1+1⁄4 miles (2,000 m) on dirt. It is held annually at a different racetrack in the United States as part of the Breeders' Cup World Championships in late October or early November. All of the races to date have been held in the United States except for the 1996 edition held at Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto, Canada.
The Del Mar Fairgrounds is a 370-acre (1.5 km2) event venue in Del Mar, California. The annual San Diego County Fair is held here, which was called the Del Mar Fair from 1984 to 2001. In 1936, the Del Mar Racetrack was built by the Thoroughbred Club with founding member Bing Crosby providing leadership.
Tom Durkin is a semi-retired American sportscaster and public address announcer specializing in Thoroughbred horse racing. He was the race caller for NBC Sports from 1984 through 2010 and served as announcer for the New York Racing Association from 1990 until retiring in 2014. For his career-long dedication, he was awarded the Eclipse Award of Merit in January 2015.
A graded stakes race is a thoroughbred horse race in the United States that meets the criteria of the American Graded Stakes Committee of the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association (TOBA). A specific grade level is then assigned to the race, based on statistical analysis of the quality of the field in previous years, provided the race meets the minimum purse criteria for the grade in question. In Canada, a similar grading system is maintained by the Jockey Club of Canada. Graded stakes races are similar to Group races in Europe but the grading is more dynamic in North America.
A race caller is a public-address announcer or sportscaster who describes the progress of a race, either for on-track or radio and TV fans. They are most prominent in horse racing, auto racing and track-and-field events.
Michael Wrona is an announcer from Brisbane, Australia specializing in Quarter Horse and Thoroughbred horse racing. He is best known for the phrase "Racing!", which he says at the start of every race call.
Garrett Keith Gomez was an American Thoroughbred jockey who won two Eclipse Awards and thirteen Breeders' Cup races during his career.
Ramón A. Domínguez is a retired Eclipse Award-winning champion jockey and Hall of Fame member in American thoroughbred horse racing.
Larry Collmus is a Thoroughbred horse racing announcer. A native of Baltimore, Collmus has called at numerous racetracks around the country. He is the race caller for NBC Sports' coverage of the Triple Crown and Breeders' Cup. He previously called races at Gulfstream Park, Monmouth Park, Suffolk Downs and NYRA.
The Laffit Pincay Jr. Award is an honor given annually since 2004 by Hollywood Park Racetrack in Inglewood, California to someone who has served the horse racing industry with integrity, dedication, determination and distinction. Named for retired U.S. Racing Hall of Fame jockey Laffit Pincay, Jr., the award, designed by American sculptor Nina Kaiser, is presented on Hollywood Gold Cup Day, a racecard that features the premier race Pincay won a record nine times.
Colonel John is an American Thoroughbred racehorse who won the 2008 Santa Anita Derby and Travers Stakes.
Greinton is a British-bred Thoroughbred racehorse who won on grass courses in France and set two track records on dirt at Hollywood Park Racetrack in the United States.
Zenyatta is a champion American Thoroughbred racehorse who won the Breeders' Cup Classic and Breeders' Cup Distaff and 19 of her 20 starts. She was the 2010 American Horse of the Year, and Champion Older Female in 2008, 2009 and 2010. She was inducted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 2016.
The 2008 Breeders' Cup World Championships was the 25th edition of the premier event of the North American Thoroughbred horse racing year. It took place on October 24 and 25 during the Oak Tree meeting at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California. The Breeders' Cup is generally regarded as the end of the North America racing season, although a few Grade I events take place in later November and December. The 2008 Breeders' Cup results were influential in the Eclipse Award divisional championship voting.
Jerry Lambert was an American jockey in the sport of Thoroughbred horse racing best known as the jockey of Hall of Fame inductee, Native Diver.
Beholder is an American Thoroughbred racehorse and multiple Eclipse Award winner. Her most memorable performance was defeating the champion filly Songbird by a nose in the 2016 Breeders' Cup Distaff. Her other notable wins include the 2012 Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies, the 2013 Breeders' Cup Distaff and the 2015 Pacific Classic against male horses. She is the first horse since 1976 to win a Grade One race at age 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6, and one of only two horses to have ever won three Breeders' Cup races. She was inducted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 2022, her first year of eligibility.
Frank Mirahmadi [born 20 October 1967] is a thoroughbred horse racing announcer. He has called at major tracks including Hialeah, Turf Paradise, Louisiana Downs, Oaklawn Park, Monmouth Park, Golden Gate Fields, Aqueduct, and Santa Anita Park.
The 2009 Breeders' Cup Classic was the 26th running of the Breeders' Cup Classic, part of the 2009 Breeders' Cup World Thoroughbred Championships program. It was run on November 7, 2009, at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California with a purse of $5,000,000.