Famous Females in Horseracing
Horseracing may be the sport of kings, but there are several famous females in horseracing history that have earned their place at the top with the boys. Fillies and mares in the sport of racing require not only the strength and speed of their male counterparts to win, but have to have the heart and will to win even more than their male equivalents. Listed here are the most famous females in horseracing.
Foaled in 1942 by Challenge II and Gallette by Sir Gallahad III, Gallorette earned $445,535 total by the end of her career in 1948. Today that would be worth over 4 million dollars. Gallorette raced against some of the top male horses of her day including Assault, Armed, Hoop Jr. and Stymie. Her most famous race was the 1946 Brooklyn Handicap where she beat male champion Stymie and earned the title of female national champion for that year. Later she was inducted into the Racehorse Hall of Fame.
The chestnut filly Regret was the first of only three fillies to ever win the Kentucky Derby. She was foaled in 1912 by Broomstick and Jersey Lightening by Hamburg and in 1914 she became the first of only four horses to win the Saratoga Special Stakes, The Sanford Stakes and the Hopeful Stakes. In 1915 she won the Kentucky Derby and was given the most prestigious honor in horseracing: the Eclipse Award for Horse of the Year. Her lifetime earnings as a racehorse totaled $35,093 (in 1934) and in 1957 Regret was inducted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame. She died in 1934 at the age of 22.
The second filly to win the famous Kentucky Derby was Genuine Risk. This chestnut filly was foaled in 1977 by Exclusive Native and Virtuous by Gallant Man. In 1980 she won the Kentucky Derby and finished 2nd in the Preakness and the Belmont Stakes. Her lifetime winnings were $646,587. In an attempt to produce the most promising colt in racing, Genuine Risk was bred to the greatest racehorse of all time Secretariat in 1982. Their colt was born stillborn however and further attempts to breed the two failed. She was also inducted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 1986 and has the Genuine Risk Handicap at Belmont Racetrack named after her. Genuine Risk died in 2009.
Winning Colors was foaled in 1985 by Caro and All-Rainbows by Bold Hour and later went on to become the third and final filly to win the Kentucky Derby in 1988. She also won the Santa Anita Oaks and Santa Anita Derby in 1988 and the Turfway Breeder’s Cup Stakes in 1989. Winning Colors was inducted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 2000 and won the 1988 Eclipse Award for Outstanding 3 year old filly. She died in 2008 at the age of 23 with a lifetime earnings of $1,526,873.
Called the “Queen of Fillies” and considered to be one of the most famous females in racing ever, Ruffian was born in 1972. She was foaled by Reviewer and Shenanigans by Native Dancer and won almost every race she was in. She won the Eclipse Award for Outstanding 2 year old filly in 1974 and won the Filly Triple Crown in 1975. Ruffian’s most famous race occurred on July 6, 1975 and was dubbed the “Battle of the Sexes”. Anxious to determine who was better, Ruffian was pitted in a match race against the male Kentucky Derby winner Foolish Pleasure. During the race, in the backstretch, Ruffian shattered her ankle in an extremely bad manner. After panicking when recovering from her emergency surgery and fracturing her elbow, ankle and legs she was euthanized on July 7, 1975. Ruffian finished with a lifetime earnings of $313,428 and was inducted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 1976 and is still considered to be the greatest female racehorse of all time. Her death caused many changes in how racehorses are treated and cared for.