Kentucky Derby Fun Facts

Official Poster of the 2018 Kentucky derby

Known variously as the "Greatest Two Minutes in Sports," "The Fastest Two Minutes in Sports," or "The Run for the Roses®," the Kentucky Derby is America's longest, continuous-running sporting event, held every year since May 17, 1875. This year's Kentucky Derby, the 144th running, will occur on May 5th at Churchill Downs—the Derby's home since its inception.

Here are 10 fun facts about the Derby you can use to amaze and impress your friends:

1. Colonel Meriwether Lewis Clark, the grandson of the famous explorer, formed the Louisville Jockey Club and acquired land for a racetrack from his uncles John and Henry Churchill.
2. The Kentucky Derby debuted in 1875. Its model was the Epsom Derby, a 1½-mile grass race that has been run in England since 1780. The Derby started as a 1½-mile turf race, but in 1896 the Derby was shortened to 1¼-miles. 
3. Thirteen of the 15 riders in the first Derby were African-Americans. Black jockeys won 15 of the first 28 races, with Isaac Murphy winning three.
4. The winning trainers in two of the first three Derbys were former slaves -- Ansel Williamson (Aristides, 1875) and Ed Brown (Baden-Baden, 1877).
5. In 1883 Leonatus wins the Derby, and the name “Churchill Downs” is first used for the racetrack that is the home of the Kentucky Derby.
6. The famed Twin Spires greet the Kentucky Derby crowd for the first time on May 6th, 1895.
7. To date 143 horses have won the Derby; 109 were born in Kentucky.
8. Twelve Kentucky Derby winners went on to win the Preakness Stakes (Baltimore, MD) and the Belmont Stakes (Elmont, NK) to become Triple Crown winners. The last was American Pharaoh in 2015.
9. Three fillies have won the Kentucky Derby: Regret in 1915, Genuine Risk in 1980 and Winning Colors in 1988.
10. The Derby Trophy is the only solid-gold trophy awarded in American sports.

Kentucky Derby Trophy (public domain)

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Resources:
https://www.kentuckyderby.com/horses/news/churchill-downs-unveils-official-2018-art-of-the-kentucky-derby-by-kentucky-artist-lynn-dunbar

https://www.newsday.com/sports/horseracing/20-fun-facts-about-the-kentucky-derby-1.2849366

https://www.kentuckyderby.com/history/kentucky-derby-history

https://www.ticketcity.com/kentucky-derby-tickets/kentucky-derby-statistics.html

https://www.courier-journal.com/story/sports/horses/triple/derby/2014/05/03/kentucky-derby-horses-born/2134528/

https://www.derbymuseum.org/education/trivia.html