The Champagne Stakes is a Grade I horse race in the United States for two-year-old thoroughbred colts and geldings. The race is run at a distance of one mile on the dirt at Belmont Park in October each year and is arguably the biggest race of the year in its category—excepting the Breeders' Cup Juvenile for which the Champagne is a major prep. The current purse for the race is $400,000. A graded stakes race is a term applied to a Thoroughbred horse race in the United States and Canada to describe races that derive their name from the stake, or entry fee, owners must pay. ... Horse-racing is an equestrian sporting activity which has been practiced over the centuries; the chariot races of Roman times were an early example, as was the contest of the steeds of the god Odin and the giant Hrungnir in Norse mythology. ... Thoroughbred race horses The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known as a race horse. ... A colt or filly with its mother A Colt is a young male horse, under the age of four. ... A gelding is a castrated animal—in English, a castrated male horse. ... Belmont Park is a major thoroughbred horse-racing facility located in the hamlet of Elmont, New York in Nassau County on Long Island (just outside of New York City). ... The Breeders Cup Juvenile is a Thoroughbred horse race for 2-year-old colts and geldings. ...

The race was first run in 1867, and it is the oldest race of its kind in the United States. It was not only modeled on, but given the same name as, the Champagne Stakes that are run in England, and have done so for a very long time. From 1910 through 1913 no race was held due to a New York State government ban on racing. Motto: (French for God and my right) Anthem: God Save the King/Queen Capital London (de facto) Largest city London Official language(s) English (de facto) Unification    - by Athelstan AD 927  Area    - Total 130,395 km² (1st in UK)   50,346 sq mi  Population    - 2006 est. ... State nickname: Empire State Other U.S. States Capital Albany Largest city New York Governor George Pataki Official languages None Area 141,205 km² (27th)  - Land 122,409 km²  - Water 18,795 km² (13. ...

Notable past winners who have gone on to success as three-year-olds or older include U.S. Triple Crown champions Seattle Slew, and Count Fleet and several others who are now in the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame. The Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing (Triple Crown for short, but the term is also used in other sports, and thus the full name should be used when it could cause confusion) consists of three races for three-year-old thoroughbred horses. ... Seattle Slew (February 15, 1974 – May 7, 2002) was an American thoroughbred race horse who won the Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing in 1977, only the tenth horse, among eleven, to accomplish the feat. ... Count Fleet, born March 24, 1940 at Stoner Creek Stud farm in Paris, Kentucky, United States and died there on December 3, 1973, was a thoroughbred racehorse and Triple Crown champion in 1943. ... The National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame was founded in 1950 in Saratoga Springs, New York, to honor the achievements of American thoroughbred race horses, jockeys, and trainers. ...

In 1972, Secretariat finished first, but was disqualified and placed second to Stop the Music. Secretariat (March 30, 1970 – October 4, 1989) was an American thoroughbred racehorse considered by many to be the greatest of all time. ...

Winners