The Annual Champion Stakes is a discontinued Thoroughbred horse race run from 1900 through 1908 that was the richest in the United States at the time for older horses with a guarantee purse of $ 25,000. Run on dirt over a distance of two and one-quarter miles at the Sheepshead Bay Race Track in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn , New York , the race was open to horses age three and older. The race was created to try to slow a decade-long trend to shorter distance races.
26-686: The Annual Champion Stakes was last run on September 12, 1908 and was won by King James . Earlier that year the Republican controlled New York Legislature under Governor Charles Evans Hughes passed the Hart–Agnew anti-betting legislation on June 11, 1908 with penalties allowing for fines and up to a year in prison. The owners of Sheepshead Bay Race Track, and other racing facilities in New York state, struggled to stay in business without wagering revenue. Racetrack operators had no choice but to drastically reduce
52-516: A bad stride that limited his racing ability, King James raced for five years, won a number of top events, and is acknowledged as the historical American Champion Older Male Horse of 1909. Trained by John Madden, in 1907 King James faced stiff competition from future Hall of Fame inductee Colin . However, King James won the important Tremont Stakes and at age three was a top contender in New York racing. While his only significant win in 1908 came in
78-466: A fixture at the track since 1926. The 1921 Travers Stakes is known for a betting scandal. In those days, bookmaking rather than parimutuel wagering was the primary method of taking bets on horse races. The original field was fairly light with the favorite, the filly Prudery , owned by Harry Payne Whitney , facing no serious competition. Then Arnold Rothstein entered his colt, Sporting Blood , ostensibly to pick up second place. A few days before
104-522: Is nicknamed the "Midsummer Derby" and is the third-ranked race for American three-year-olds according to international classifications, behind only the Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes. First held in 1864, it is the oldest stakes race in the United States specifically for 3-year-olds, and was named for William R. Travers , the president of the old Saratoga Racing Association. His horse, Kentucky, won
130-451: Is presented to the winner each year by a member of the Riddle family. The winner of the race is presented with a blanket of carnations, which is approximately 10 feet long and requires about 1,500 flowers and is draped over the withers of the winner. The blanket is red in color outlined with a fringe of white carnation and a large "T" also in white. The carnations are red and white, which are
156-596: The Brighton Mile run that year at Empire City Race Track . He continued to race through age seven with reasonable success, retiring with earnings in excess of $ 100,000. He was sent to stud duty at Henry T. Oxnard's Blue Ridge Farm in Virginia , where he sired ten stakes race winners. His offspring includes Travers and Withers Stakes winner Spur (b. 1909) and the filly My Dear (b. 1917), who raced successfully in Canada and
182-512: The Man o' War Cup , was designed by Tiffany & Co. Its namesake, Man o' War , won this race in 1920. The trophy was won by Man o' War in a special match race in 1920 against Sir Barton , the 1919 American Triple Crown winner. The wife of owner Samuel Riddle donated the trophy in 1936 as the permanent award for winning the race. Each year, the name of the winner is inscribed on the Cup. A gold-plated replica
208-604: The Prince of Wales Stakes and Breeders' Stakes , and finishing second in the Queen's Plate . At the Travers that year, Runaway Groom became the second horse in racing history to beat the three winners of the Triple Crown series in the same race, defeating Kentucky Derby winner Gato Del Sol , Preakness Stakes winner Aloma's Ruler , and Belmont Stakes winner Conquistador Cielo . Sun Briar
234-487: The purse money being paid out which by 1909 saw many stakes races being canceled or offering a substantially reduced purse. Further restrictive legislation was passed by the New York Legislature in 1910 which deepened the financial crisis for track operators and led to a complete shutdown of racing across the state during 1911 and 1912. When a Court ruling saw racing return in 1913 it was too late for any revival of
260-566: The 1962 U.S. Champion 3-Year-Old Horse . In 1978, Affirmed finished the Travers ahead of rival Alydar but was disqualified for crowding Alydar off the rail. Alydar was awarded the win. It was the last of 10 times the two would race each other in one of the sport's greatest rivalries. In 1982, Runaway Groom , the Champion Canadian Three year old arrived at Saratoga after competing in the Canadian Triple Crown , having won
286-584: The 2015 renewal was increased to $ 1,600,000 due to the presence of Triple Crown winner American Pharoah . From 2018 until 2022 the Travers Stakes was sponsored by Jim McIngvale under the name of retired stallion Runhappy . The 155th Travers Stakes will be run on Saturday, August 24, 2024. The Travers is run at scale weights: colts and geldings carry 126 pounds (57 kg) and fillies carry 121 pounds (55 kg). The Travers has been run at four different distances: The winner's trophy, known as
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#1732845525799312-642: The Annual Champion Stakes as the Sheepshead Bay horse racing facility never reopened. Speed record: Most wins: Most wins by a jockey : Most wins by a trainer : Most wins by an owner: King James (horse) King James (foaled 1905 in Kentucky ) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse . Bred by one of America's most important breeders , John E. Madden , he was the son of 1898 Kentucky Derby winner Plaudit . Although burdened by
338-747: The Annual Champion Stakes at the Sheepshead Bay Race Track , in other major events he ran second in the Travers Stakes , the Brooklyn Derby , and the Suburban Handicap plus earned thirds in the pre-Triple Crown Belmont Stakes , Withers Stakes , and Brooklyn Handicap . In 1909, John Madden sold King James to Sam Hildreth , who began the year racing the four-year-old in California , where he won three important Handicap races. Returning to
364-800: The New York racing circuit, King James won the Brooklyn Handicap and the Metropolitan Handicap and in Toronto, Ontario , Canada, the first of his two consecutive Toronto Cup Handicaps . Of his twelve starts that year, he had ten wins and two seconds, which earned him a historical Championship as the Top Handicap Male Horse in the United States. At age five in 1910, King James won the Annual Champion Stakes , Sheepshead Bay Handicap , his second straight Toronto Cup Handicap, and
390-443: The Travers Stakes, sometimes referred to as a " superfecta ". In 1962, Jaipur won by a nose-bob in track record time over the arguably more talented Ridan after a long, head-to-head battle over the entire mile and a quarter. Still written and talked about today, the race is listed in the 2006 book Horse Racing's Top 100 Moments written by the staff of Blood-Horse Publications . The race result determined which colt would be named
416-439: The Travers. by one length in a time of 2:02.23 over a muddy track making Antonucci the second female to win the race in its 154-year history.The horse was ridden by jockey Javier Castellano who set a record of seven winnings in the race. In 2024, Thorpedo Anna competed in the 155th Travers looking to become the first filly to win this race since 1915. Despite a late challenge down the home stretch, Fierceness ended up winning
442-511: The United States and was the 1921 American Champion Older Female Horse . King James was the damsire of Dark Secret and full sisters Mona Bell, the 2000 Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame inductee, and Iribelle, a foundation mare for E. P. Taylor's National Stud of Canada farm. Travers Stakes The Travers Stakes is an American Grade I Thoroughbred horse race held at Saratoga Race Course in Saratoga Springs, New York . It
468-426: The colors of Saratoga Race Track. The blanket is prepared the night before the race by a Saratoga florist. Winning connections are also given a lawn jockey statue custom-painted in the silk colors of the winning owner to be displayed at the racecourse entrance for the next year. Since 1961, the colors of the Travers winner have been painted onto a canoe which sits on a pond in the infield. The canoe itself has been
494-431: The event a sellout for the first time ever. In addition, the purse was raised to $ 1.6 million. The race reaffirmed Saratoga's reputation as the "graveyard of champions" when Keen Ice defeated American Pharoah. In 2016, The 147th Travers was equally notable as Arrogate rolled home to win by 13 1/2 lengths and set a new stakes record, finishing the race in 1:59:36. Arrogate's victory helped Bob Baffert to avenge his loss
520-478: The first running of the Travers. The race was not run in 1896, 1898, 1899, 1900, 1911, and 1912. From 1943-5, it was run at Belmont Park instead of Saratoga due to the war. The race is the highlight of the summer race meeting at Saratoga, just as the Belmont Stakes is the highlight of the spring meeting at Belmont Park . The purse was increased to $ 1,000,000 in 1999 and then to $ 1,250,000 in 2014. The purse for
546-400: The infield pond to commemorate the winners. It was the first official tie in the race's history and the winning owners split the $ 800,000 first-place prize money. In 1874, Attila and Acrobat dead heated but were forced to run off to break the tie. On August 29, 2015, the 146th Travers Stakes saw Triple Crown winner American Pharoah race in front of a NYRA capped crowd of 50,000, making
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#1732845525799572-549: The previous year with American Pharoah. In 2023, Arcangelo by Arrogate won the 154th Travers trained by Jena Antonucci , the first woman to have a horse she trained win one of the three races in American horse racing's triple crown. The horse was ridden in the 2023 Belmont Stakes by jockey Javier Castellano , winner aboard Mage in the 2023 Kentucky Derby . Arcangelo was shipped to the Saratoga Race Course where he won
598-492: The race, however, Rothstein had learned that Prudery was off her feed. He knew he might have a real chance to win. Initially, the odds on the filly were 1-4, while Rothstein's colt was 5–2. On the day of the race, however, a leading three-year-old, Grey Lag , was entered by trainer Sam Hildreth . Grey Lag immediately became the favorite, with Prudery the second choice, driving the odds on Sporting Blood up to 3–1. Rothstein bet $ 150,000 on his horse. Just before post time , Grey Lag
624-404: The recent death of his mother. In 2001, Point Given won the Travers before a record Travers Stakes day attendance of 60,486. The total betting handle was $ 34,529,273, which was a Saratoga record at that time. On August 25, 2012, Alpha and Golden Ticket finished in a dead heat for first place – meaning they could not be separated in the photo finish. Following the race, two canoes were put in
650-485: Was scratched with no explanation. During the race, Sporting Blood overtook the ailing Prudery, gaining his owner nearly half a million dollars, including wagers and the purse . Although many smelled foul play, it was never proven that Hildreth received any payoff or that there was a conspiracy between him and Rothstein. In 1941, Whirlaway became the only horse ever to win both the American Triple Crown and
676-476: Was the first to do so in the 1918 Travers Stakes. The 1997 Travers saw U.S. Racing Hall of Fame jockeys Jerry Bailey and Chris McCarron (aboard Behrens and Deputy Commander respectively) in a home-stretch duel wherein Deputy Commander prevailed. Adding to the drama was a thunderstorm which produced hail 24 hours before the race, and the uncertainty around whether or not McCarron would be present after
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