Edgar S. Prado

Twenty-two years after he arrived in the U.S. from Peru in 1986 to be a contract rider for Manny Azpurua in Florida, Prado was inducted into the Racing Hall of Fame in Saratoga Springs, N.Y. His father was a trainer in Peru and two of his brothers have been jockeys in the U.S. Prado moved from Florida to New England then to the Mid-Atlantic circuit, where he built his reputation.

He led the nation in victories three consecutive years, 1997-1999; the 1997 total was 536 wins. He made the most of a great opportunity in the summer of 1999 when trainer John Kimmel offered him a chance to replace the injured Richard Migliore as his first-call rider at Saratoga. Prado moved to New York and became a leading rider on the NYRA circuit. He led all riders in New York in 2005 with 206 wins and ranked second nationally in purse earnings that year with $18.6 million. He stopped Triple Crown bids in the Belmont Stakes with Sarava in 2002 and two years later by beating Smarty Jones with the Nick Zito-trained Birdstone. Prado rode the unbeaten 2006 Kentucky Derby winner Barbaro and won the Eclipse Award as outstanding jockey that year.

In the 2015 Breeders' Cup Sprint, Prado won his first Breeders' Cup in five years on Runhappy. That was his fifth career win in the Breeders Cup World Championships. His others came in the 2010 Emirates Airline Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Turf on Shared Account, the 2006 Emirates Airline Breeders' Cup Distaff with Round Pond, the 2005 Alberto VO5 Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies aboard Folklore and the 2005 TVG Breeders' Cup Sprint on Silver Train.