all in Legends

Having proved in the Bay Shore Stakes three weeks earlier that he had progressed through the winter and come back bigger and stronger than ever, Secretariat returned to competition in the Grade 2 Gotham Stakes at Aqueduct April 7 at a mile, an eighth of a mile longer

Fans standing at the rail will see a myriad of people working around the racing ovals before them. Outriders on their mounts will stand by the rail as they wait for the field for the next race. Assistant starters will mill around the starting gate as the field comes on to the track for their warmups. As those professionals work, another group takes up position at certain vantage points around the racetrack. Laden with a camera or two and maybe a sizable telephoto lens as well, these pros find the right spot, their focus on this all-important task: getting the right shot.

After losing the first race of his career July 4, 1972, Meadow Stable’s Secretariat finished first in his eight remaining tests as a 2-year-old, although he was disqualified and placed second in the Champagne Stakes for allegedly causing interference.

The trajectory of each Triple Crown winner’s career is unique to that horse and his moment. Each shares victories in the three classics, but how they got there and what they did afterward speaks to their individual talents and the people connected to them. Though the list has 13 names, one member of this elite club did something that no other has done: ventured overseas to try a new surface on a worldwide stage: Omaha.

A list of Woodford Cefis Stephens’ accomplishments could pretty much fill a chapter of an encyclopedia.

In a career that started in the 1930s and lasted into the 1990s, the Hall of Fame trainer known as “Woody” was revered as one the sport’s most respected and beloved figures. He won eight Triple Crown races, saddled nine champions and received enough trophies from his stakes wins to stock a three-story museum.

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