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The Kentucky Derby is a prestigious 1.25-mile horse race for three-year-old Thoroughbreds held annually at Churchill Downs Racetrack in Louisville, Kentucky. It is the first of three legs in the Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing and is known as ‘The Run for the Roses’ and ‘the most exciting two minutes in sport’. The race was started in 1875 by Colonel Meriwether Lewis Clark Jr. and has since become the most famous and successful three-year-old horse race in the United States. It is also a major attraction due to the party atmosphere that surrounds it, with the mint julep being the official drink of the race.
The Kentucky Der is an annual 1.25-mile horse race for three-year-old Thoroughbreds held at Churchill Downs Racetrack in Louisville, Kentucky. It ranks first among American Thoroughbred racing events and is the first of three legs in the Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing, which also includes The Preakness Stakes and The Belmont Stakes. It is one of the few American Thoroughbred racing events that attracts a large audience outside of the horse racing world. It is also known as ‘The Run for the Roses’, because a blanket of roses is awarded to the winning horse and as ‘the most exciting two minutes in sport’.
Started in 1875, Kentucky Der is one of the longest running thoroughbred horse races in the United States. It was started by Colonel Meriwether Lewis Clark Jr., who had competed in several horse races in England and France while visiting Europe in 1872. The Bluegrass region of Kentucky, Clark’s home, was known for breeding horses racing and Clark formed the Louisville Racing Club to obtain funds to build a race track. Clark eventually founded Churchill Downs, named after Henry and John Churchill, relatives of Clark on whose land the runway was built.
The Kentucky Der was originally 1.5 miles long, in accordance with races Clark had entered in Europe, but was changed to 1.25 miles in 1896. The first Kentucky Der featured 15 horses before an audience of 10,000 and was won by the colt Aristide , edited by Oliver Lewis. More than half of the first 28 annual races were won by horses ridden by black jockeys. After a successful maiden race, Kentucky would struggle financially until 1902, when Churchill Downs was acquired by a group of businessmen led by Colonel Matt Winn. Since then, the Kentucky Der has been the most famous and successful three-year-old horse race in the United States
The Kentucky Der’s popularity led to its first telecast in 1952 and it has been broadcast annually since. Beginning in 2004, jockeys were permitted to advertise companies by wearing company logos on their clothing. Along with the race, Kentucky Der is also a major attraction due to the party atmosphere that surrounds it. A key symbol of the atmosphere is the mint julep, the official drink of the race, made with bourbon, mint and simple syrup over ice.
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