Jockey Robert Landry, who won the 2004 Queen’s Plate with Niigon and recorded 2,045 wins over his 29-year career, has announced his retirement.
Landry, who scored his first career win aboard Hammy Hubert, June 21, 1981 at Fort Erie and won his initial added-money race in 1982 aboard La Salle Park in the Fair Play Stakes, earned a reputation as one of Canadian thoroughbred racing’s most respected riders, not only for his commitment to his craft, but also in the various charitable causes he supported.
Now, the 48-year-old Toronto native will take over the reins as Racing Manager for Chiefswood Stable, the owner who he teamed with to win the “Gallop for the Guineas.”
“The time is right for me to embark on this new association with horse racing,” said Landry, who was Canada’s outstanding jockey in 1993 and 1994 and led all Woodbine riders in stakes wins in 1993 (13), 1994 (18) and 1996 (18). “I have to admit it was a hard decision because I love the sport and I love riding. But to have this opportunity to work for the people I won a Queen’s Plate with is truly special.”
Born September 18, 1962, in Toronto, Landry enjoyed a stellar career.
He rode five consecutive champion two-year-old fillies (Larkwhistle, 1996; Primaly, ‘97; Fantasy Lake, ‘98; Hello Seattle, ‘99; Poetically, ‘00) during their Sovereign-winning years. In 1999, he won the Woodbine Mile aboard Sam-Son Farm’s Quiet Resolve ($91.10 to win), one of the biggest upsets in Woodbine stakes history.
A personal highlight came in 2003. On the same day he was presented with the Avelino Gomez Memorial Award for significant contributions to the sport, he captured the Woodbine Oaks aboard Too Late Now. His other Oaks wins came in 1997 with Capdiva and in 2000 with Catch the Ring.
“Rob is a true horseman,” said trainer and thoroughbred racing industry leader Sue Leslie. “He gets into a horse’s head and earns their trust and respect. His passion for horses is worn on his sleeve. A lot of what I have learned about horses has come from Rob.”
Curtis Joseph, one of the National Hockey League’s all-time winning goaltenders, also has high praise for Landry, who rode a vast majority of the thoroughbreds he has owned.
“There are so many things you could say about Rob,” said Joseph, who watched Landry pull off a major upset in the 2005 Ontario Jockey Club Stakes when his Awesome Action bested Soaring Free, Canada’s Horse of the Year in 2004. “I have a great respect for him as a rider and as a person. He’s a very giving human being.”
Landry had 17,656 career mounts, along with purse earnings of $69,786,382.
“Obviously, there are so many great memories that I have,” said Landry, who notched 167 lifetime stakes wins, 29 graded. “I owe a lot to Woodbine for how they treated me and I owe a lot to the many people, including the fans, who supported me throughout my career.”
He collected career win 2,000 aboard Firetheexecutive on July 1, 2009.
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