Horse Racing

Click on the links to find more details on the three elite races that make up the Canadian Triple Crown:

There are Triple Crown series of races for three-year-old thoroughbreds held all over the globe including one in Canada that was established in 1959. The most well-known and celebrated Triple Crown is the United States, and the Canadian counterpart is distinctive to others as it shares the same race distances as those held in America and also allows geldings to compete. Geldings are barred from a number of important flat races in many Triple Crown series including the one held in Europe. The Canadian Triple Crown is also unique as all of its races are contested over three different surfaces. This variation in distance and track surface ensures that only the finest and most versatile runners see victory in this coveted event.

The first leg of the Canadian Triple Crown is the Queen?s Plate. Run over 1 ? miles in June, it is held at the Woodbine racecourse in Ontario and is worth CAN $1million.

The middle leg of the series is the Prince of Wales Stakes in July. The race distance for this event is 1 3/16 miles over a dirt track at the Fort Erie Racecourse in Ontario and is worth CAN $500 000.

The third and final race of the series is the Breeder?s Stakes, run over 1 ? miles, it is the longest distanced race of the Triple Crown. This race is conducted on a turf course at the E. P. Taylor Course in Woodbine in August and offers the same prize money as the Prince of Wales Stakes, CAN $500 000.
Over the series? history, there have been seven horses to claim a Triple Crown victory in Canada. The winners, along with the year they triumphed and their jockey, trainer and owner are listed below. As some of the winners were ridden by different jockeys for the three races, the jockey names are listed in the order the races are run, Queen?s Plate, Prince of Wales Stakes and Breeders Stakes. If the horse was ridden by the same jockey for all three races this is indicated with an (A).

Unofficially, the first horse to win all three legs of the Triple Crown was Queensway in 1932. But as the Triple Crown title had not yet been established, the Canadian Jockey Club does not recognize her as a Triple Crown winner. So taking this into consideration, there has only been one filly to become a Triple Crown champion, Dance Smartly in 1991.

A number of quality horses have come very close to Triple Crown success, winning the first two legs of the race only to lose at the Breeders Stakes, they were: Almoner (1970), L?Enjoleur (1975), Norcliffe (1976), Golden Choice (1986), Scatter The Gold (2000).