Chenery believed that her big chestnut Thoroughbred had what it took to be a racehorse. Despite his rough beginning on the race track, she had faith in him and he soon proved to be an incredible athlete. Not only was Secretariat was known for being kind-hearted, but he also had a big heart in the literal sense. After Secretariat was euthanized on October 4, , at the age of 19, veterinarian Thomas Swerczek performed a necropsy.
The heart was perfect. There were no problems with it. The sale was made with the agreement that Secretariat would not race as a four-year-old and Chenery would have control of all of his three-year-old racing career. After his racing days, he was sent to Claiborne Farm in Kentucky to stand at stud.
After his outstanding journey to become the ninth Triple Crown winner, Secretariat was featured in many best-selling magazines. He graced the covers of Sports Illustrated, Time, and Newsweek. The big chestnut also received so much fan mail that Chenery needed a secretary to handle all of it.
Secretariat received so much attention from the press and his adoring fans he even learned to pose for the camera. There is even a movie about him called Secretariat. See our list of the 25 best horse movies here. When Secretariat first arrived at Claiborne Farm, his sperm displayed some signs of immaturity. To test his fertility, he was bred with three non-Thoroughbred mares.
His first foal was out of an Appaloosa mare and was given the name First Secretary. Originally the Appaloosa Horse Club refused to register him, so he was registered in Canada, with the registration then being transferred to the USA. After it was proved Secretariat was an able stud, he went on to produce named foals.
Of those foals, were winners, with 54 of those being stakes winners. He also proved to be an outstanding broodmare sire.
Even outside the horse racing world, Secretariat was acknowledged for his incredible athletic ability. His winning ways gained the appreciation of sports fans all over. As the only horse to make the top 50, he ranked 35 on the list. The chestnut stallion also racked up numerous other awards and honors. It had to have been the machine that was wrong! The Daily Racing Form was so sure of their clockers, they chose to run their own time in their chart of the race rather than the official time, and noted in their publication that they believed Secretariat held the new record.
The day after the race Laurin announced that he would request a review of the time before he shipped out for New York to prepare for the Belmont Stakes.
They also had their track clocker, E. McLean Jr. The network seemed sure that Secretariat had broken the record, and by devoting a half hour of airtime to the question, turned it into a national controversy. Secretariat went on to win the Belmont in spectacular fashion, breaking that record as well. She claimed watching the CBS broadcast convinced her that Secretariat was dealt a serious injustice, since by the looks of the videotape he finished his race a full three lengths faster than Canonero.
The evidence seemed irrefutable. The Maryland Racing Commission held a hearing in July where they heard testimony from a long list of expert witnesses, including a producer from CBS and they watched multiple recordings of the race and the race from An attractive chestnut colt, he grew to over 16 hands high and was at two years the size of a three-year-old.
He came from behind to finish fourth; it was the only time in his career that he finished a race and did not place. Eleven days later, he won a six-furlong race at Saratoga in Saratoga Springs, New York, and soon after, another race.
His trainer, Lucien Laurin, moved him up to class in August, entering him in the Sanford Stakes at Saratoga, which he won by three lengths. By the end of , he had won seven of nine races. With easy victories in his first two starts of , Secretariat seemed on his way to the Triple Crown. He was the first to run the Derby in less than two minutes and his record still stands. Secretariat gave the finest performance of his career in the Belmont Stakes, completing the 1. He also won by a record 31 lengths.
Ron Turcotte, who jockeyed Secretariat in all but three of his races, claimed that at Belmont he lost control of Secretariat and that the horse sprinted into history on his own accord.
Secretariat would race six more times, winning four and finishing second twice. Among his notable offspring is the Preakness and Belmont winner, Risen Star. Secretariat was euthanized in after falling ill.
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