Thoroughbred Racing

Horses are running again at Keeneland and in this episode of WUKY’s Saving Stories we hear from one of the first, and one of the most successful, African American horse trainers in the modern era. In this 1986 Nunn Center interview, Oscar Dishman Jr. reflects on his rise from exercise boy / groom, his decision to become a horse trainer in 1960, and the challenges he had to overcome on his way to the top of his field. Training the winning horses for the 1973 Michigan Mile, Ohio Derby, Hawthorne Stakes, and the Widener Handicap (1977-1978) are among the highlights of his career for which he was awarded the Black Achievement Award in Lexington.

The lifesize monument of Secretariat running in his paddock at Claiborne Farm was installed in Secretariat Park in Paris, Kentucky Tuesday morning and WUKY’s Samantha Lederman talked to its sculptor, Jocelyn Russell.

New legislation introduced in Congress on Tuesday would dismantle the year-old national authority in charge of regulating safety and medication in horse racing and replace it with an organization backers say would allow for the safe treatment of horses and address concerns about doping.

Churchill Downs is extending Hall of Fame trainer Bob Baffert’s suspension through 2024, keeping the two-time Triple Crown winner from entering horses in the Kentucky Derby and other races for an additional year.

Churchill Downs will suspend racing operations on Wednesday and move the remainder of its spring meet to Ellis Park to conduct a “top-to-bottom”review of safety and surface protocols in the wake of 12 horse fatalities the past month at the home of the Kentucky Derby.

Horse racing’s oversight authority will hold an emergency summit Tuesday with Churchill Downs, Kentucky's racing commission and HISA veterinaryteams to review information and analysis in the wake of 12 horse fatalities in the past month at the home of the Kentucky Derby.

Fusaichi Pegasus, the 2000 Kentucky Derby winner, has died. He was 26. Ashford Stud in Versailles, Kentucky, says he was euthanized due to the infirmities of old age.

WUKY’s award-winning history series Saving Stories celebrates the 50th anniversary of Secretariat’s Kentucky Derby triumph. Nunn Center for Oral History director Doug Boyd shares audio from a 2007 interview with owner Penny Chenery conducted by Kim Lady Smith in which she talks about how the legendary champion eventually captured her heart while captivating the sporting world in 1973.

Chris McCarron is a Hall of Fame jockey and a two-time Kentucky Derby winner. He won six Triple Crown events in all. He won nine Breeders Cup races, including five Classics, and many other major races. He led North American jockeys in earnings four times, and led in wins three times. He won an Eclipse Award for Outstanding Apprentice Jockey in 1974 and another Eclipse for Outstanding Jockey in 1980. He was inducted into the National Museum of Racing Hall of Fame in 1989.He retired in 2002 with 7,141 wins – currently seventh all-time – and purse earnings of nearly 264 million dollars, a record at the time. He served as technical advisor, racing designer, and had an acting role as Hall of Fame jockey Charlie Kurtsinger in the 2003 film “Seabiscuit.” He also founded the North American Racing Academy to help develop the skills of young riders.

A federal judge has denied Bob Baffert’s request to lift his two-year suspension by Churchill Downs. The judge says the Hall of Fame trainer did not prove its discipline hurt his business and reputation.