The Kentucky Derby has welcomed thousands to Louisville, Kentucky, since the first race in 1875. The derby is widely watched by people at home, too, since its first nationally televised race in 1952.
The race, which was started by Meriwether Lewis Clark Jr., has become the longest-running sporting event in United States history. Today, millions get involved in the race, whether it’s through visiting Churchill Downs, derby-themed watch parties or betting.
There have been numerous memorable moments in the Kentucky Derby. Here are just a few.
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The Kentucky Derby takes place at Churchill Downs every year in Louisville, Ky. (Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
- 1875: Aristides is the first Kentucky Derby winner
- 1915: The first female horse is crowned
- 1919: Sir Barton is the first to win the Triple Crown
- 1952: The derby becomes nationally televised
- 1968: Dancer’s Image doesn’t receive prize money
- 1973: Secretariat becomes (and remains) the fastest derby winner
- 1986: The oldest jockey wins the derby
- 2009: Mine That Bird goes from worst to first
- 2019: Country House wins the derby after a disqualification
- 2022: Rich Strike wins the derby after a last-minute join
1. 1875: Aristides is the first Kentucky Derby winner
The first Kentucky Derby was won by Aristides and his jockey Oliver Lewis in 1875.
The first race hosted around 10,000 fans at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky, where they experienced the historic derby, according to the Kentucky Derby website.
Aristides won with a time of a little over 2 minutes and 30 seconds, according to the site. At the time of the win, Lewis was just 19 years old. It was the only derby he competed in.
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The year 1875 marked the first Kentucky Derby. (Caufield & Shook/Library of Congress/Corbis/VCG via Getty Images)
The winning prize for the first race was $2,850, according to the source.
During the earlier stages of the derby, the race was 1.5 miles long. In 1896, this was lowered to 1.25 miles, the distance still used today.
2. 1915: The first female horse is crowned
It wasn’t until 1915 when a filly, a female horse, became the first to cross the Kentucky Derby finish line, according to the Kentucky Derby website.
Regret won that race. Since then, only two other female horses have won.
The next trophy taken home by a female horse wasn’t until 1980, when Genuine Risk won. Winning Colors took first place in 1988. All three winners were the only female horses in the race at the time of their wins.
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There have only been three fillies (female horses) who have won the Kentucky Derby over the years, including Genuine Risk, the second female to win in 1980. (Jerry Cooke/Corbis via Getty Images)
In all, 40 fillies have competed in the Kentucky Derby, according to the site.
3. 1919: Sir Barton is the first to win the Triple Crown
The first horse to win the Triple Crown was Sir Barton in 1919, according to the Kentucky Derby site.
The Triple Crown is the top accomplishment in horse racing. To gain the Triple Crown, a horse must win the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness Stakes and the Belmont Stakes.
In Kentucky Derby history, only 13 horses have accomplished the feat.
The horses who have won the Triple Crown:
- Sir Barton (1919)
- Gallant Fox (1930)
- Omaha (1935)
- War Admiral (1937)
- Whirlaway (1941)
- Count Fleet (1943)
- Assault (1946)
- Citation (1948)
- Secretariat (1973)
- Seattle Shaw (1977)
- Affirmed (1978)
- American Pharoah (2015)
- Justify (2018)
4. 1952: The derby becomes nationally televised
The derby was first televised in 1952, according to History.com.
That race was won by American Thoroughbred Hill Gail, jockey Eddie Arcaro and trainer Ben A. Jones, according to the Kentucky Derby website.
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Hill Gail was the winner of the first nationally televised Kentucky Derby in 1952. (Bettmann/Contributor)
5. 1968: Dancer’s Image doesn’t receive prize money
In 1968, the derby’s winner did not receive prize money, according to History.com.
Dancer’s Image, the winning horse that year, held on to the title for three days before he was disqualified for drugs, according to the source.
When Dancer’s Image was tested for drugs following the race, traces of phenylbutazone, a pain reliever for horses, was found. At the time of the race, there was a zero-tolerance policy for drugs in horses, according to History.com.
It was later discovered that the drug was given to the horse approximately a week prior to the race, but there was still some left in its system at the time of the derby. So, he was disqualified, and the second-place horse, Forward Pass, was named the new winner.
The battle didn’t end there. There was an ongoing legal battle when Dancer’s Image’s owner, Peter D. Fuller, sued. The battle lasted nearly five years, according to History.com. Eventually, Fuller lost and Calumet Farm, the owners of Forward Pass, were given the prize money.
Dancer’s Image was disqualified after being named the winner of the Kentucky Derby in 1968. (Jerry Cooke /Sports Illustrated via Getty Images)
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6. 1973: Secretariat becomes (and remains) the fastest derby winner
The 1973 race is one of the most historic in Kentucky Derby history. Thoroughbred Secretariat won the race with a record-breaking time of 1:59.40.
As of 2023, no other horse has beaten Secretariat’s time. The horse also went on to be a Triple Crown winner.
7. 1986: The oldest jockey wins the derby
In 1986, Bill Shoemaker became the oldest jockey to win the Kentucky Derby, according to History.com.
At the time of his win with the horse Ferdinand, he was 54 years old.
8. 2009: Mine That Bird goes from worst to first
One of the biggest comebacks in Kentucky Derby history happened in 2009.
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Mine That Bird winning the Kentucky Derby in 2009 marked one of the race’s greatest upsets. (Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
Mine That Bird, a horse ridden by jockey Calvin Borel, was in last place for the majority of the race. In fact, Mine That Bird wasn’t even mentioned until NBC announcer Tom Durkin shared that the horse was “well behind the rest of them.”
Mine That Bird remained in the back of the pack until the final stretch of the race, where he seemingly came out of nowhere and blew past all the other horses. The horse ended up coming in first place and making history as one of the greatest comebacks, beating 50-to-1 odds.
9. 2019: Country House wins the derby after a disqualification
Country House was the second-place winner of the derby in 2019 but ended up taking home a win after the winner, Maximum Security, was disqualified from the race shortly after its conclusion.
After review, it was determined Maximum Security veered slightly out of his lane toward the end of the race, which was determined to have affected some of the other horses in the race.
This led to Country House, the second-place finisher of the derby, getting the win.
10. 2022: Rich Strike wins the derby after a last-minute join
Rich Strike had 80-to-1 odds to win and ended up victorious in the 2022 Kentucky Derby, making for a huge upset.
Rich Strike joined the derby lineup late after Ethereal Road dropped out. The horse then went on to win the 148th Kentucky Derby with jockey Sonny Leon and trainer Eric Reed.
