The Jockey Club Gold Cup is a prestigious thoroughbred horse race open to horses three years old and upward, established in 1919. It is typically the main event of the fall meeting at Belmont Park, just as the Belmont Stakes is of the spring meeting and the Travers Stakes is of the summer meeting at Saratoga. The Thoroughbred is a horse breed developed in 18th century England when English mares were bred with imported Arabian stallions to create a distance racer. ... 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. ... 1919 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... Secretariats statue greets racing fans and jockeys in the paddock of Belmont Park. ... The Belmont Stakes is a prestigious horse race held yearly in June at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. ... The Travers Stakes, held at Saratoga Race Course near Saratoga Springs, New York, is the oldest major thoroughbred horse race in the United States. ... Saratoga Race Course is a famous horse-racing track in Saratoga Springs, New York. ...

It has often been the event in which horses who have done well in a year's United States Triple Crown races first face older opponents, on a weight-for-age basis. Seven horses have won the race twice (including the first Triple Tiara winner, Shuvee) and the great Kelso won five times. 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. ... The Triple Tiara of Thoroughbred Racing, formerly known as the Filly Triple Crown, is a set of horse races in the United States which is open to three year old fillies. ... Kelso (1957 - 1983) was a thoroughbred racehorse, considered to be one of the best of the century. ...

Despite its $1 million purse and Grade 1 status the stature of the race has suffered somewhat in recent years thanks to the emergence of the Breeders' Cup (held not long afterward) and the race's shortening to the more common distance of 1¼ miles in 1990, making it a less unique test. (The race was originally, and from 1976 through 1989, run at 1½ miles, and from 1921 through 1975 it was two miles long, second in distance only to the far less prestigious, 2¼-mile Display Handicap among American stakes races during this period). From 1958 through 1974, except for 1962 and 1968, the race was held at Aqueduct Racetrack instead of Belmont. The Breeders Cup World Thoroughbred Championships is an annual series of thoroughbred horse races sponsored by the National Thoroughbred Racing Association. ... 1990 is a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1976 is a leap year starting on Thursday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1989 is a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1921 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... 1975 was a common year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1975 calendar). ... 1958 was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1974 is a common year starting on Tuesday (click on link for calendar). ... 1962 was a common year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1968 was a leap year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1968 calendar). ... Aqueduct Racetrack, known as the Big A, is a horse racetrack in the neighborhood of Ozone Park in Queens, New York. ...

The 86th running, on October 2, 2004, was won by Funny Cide. The 87th running, on October 3, 2005, was won by Borrego, and perhaps the most memorable renewal was that of 1978, when Exceller defeated the previous year's Triple Crown winner, Seattle Slew, by a nose, with the 1978 Triple Crown winner, Affirmed, finishing fifth. October 2 is the 275th day (276th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 90 days remaining. ... 2004(MMIV) is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Funny Cide (born April 20, 2000) is a Thoroughbred race horse bred at McMahon of Saratoga Thoroughbreds in the town of Saratoga, New York, from sire Distorted Humor and dam Belles Good Cide. ... October 3 is the 276th day of the year (277th in Leap years). ... 2005(MMV) is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1978 was a common year starting on Sunday (the link is to a full 1978 calendar). ... Exceller (1973 - 1997) is widely considered one of the best horses to race in the United States and not win a year-end championship. ... Seattle Slew (February 15, 1974 – May 7, 2002) was an American thoroughbred race horse that won the Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing in 1977, only the tenth horse to accomplish the feat. ... Affirmed, a chestnut colt born February 21, 1975, at Harbor View Farm, Ocala, Florida – died January 12, 2001 at Jonabell Farm in Lexington, Kentucky, was an American thoroughbred race horse that won the Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing in 1978, only the 11th horse to accomplish the feat. ...

External link

• NYRA Gold Cup page