Of all the horses that have made their mark at Saratoga over the course of the racetrack’s 150-plus years of horse racing, one horse became synonymous with the historic upstate New York venue more than any other.
There was excitement and uncertainty entering the inaugural Breeders’ Cup in 1984, but the initial championship had exceeded the hype even before it came to an unforgettable conclusion when three tenacious racehorses rumbled toward the Breeders’ Cup Classic finish line unwilling to give an inch.
How does a horse follow up winning the Queen’s Plate and then defeating three Triple Crown classic winners in the Breeders’ Cup Classic? By siring a couple of classic winners and Eclipse Awards champions, of course. Such is the story of Awesome Again, Canadian Hall of Famer and winner of the 1998 Breeders’ Cup Classic. His time on the racetrack shows how grit and talent can create a champion.
In the pantheon of influential names in California racing, Clement L. Hirsch ranks up there with Bing Crosby, Dr. Charles Strub, and Elias “Lucky” Baldwin, owners and breeders whose passion for the sport translated to a lifetime of work on its behalf.
There are few certainties in life or in the sport of horse racing. But just as you could count on the changing of the seasons, you could count on Jonathan Sheppard sending out winners by the dozen, year after year, in tests of both pure speed and dexterity over jumps. He retired from training in the U.S. before the 2021 season, maintained a small stable in Ireland for a short while, and passed away at 82 on Aug. 27, 2023.
