A filly that won the Queen’s Plate and the Woodbine Oaks in 2002 along with Burning Point and Invitro, two Standardbred pacing mares with combined earnings of over $5 million, headline this year’s class of inductees into Canada’s Horse Racing Hall of Fame.
The five members of the Thoroughbred class include Dancethruthedawn along with her Sam-Son Farm connections – the late Tammy Samuel-Balaz in the Builders category and Mark Frostad, who trained three of Sam-Son’s Plate winners. Belmont Stakes winner Touch Gold, owned and bred by Frank Stronach and partner, William Holtsinger, earned the vote in the Male category while Square Angel, owned by the late Gen.
Preston Gilbride, was elected in the Veterans category.
One of the most dramatic finishes in Belmont Stakes history was witnessed by millions on TV as the colt upset Silver Charm’s bid to win the Triple Crown in 1997. Touch Gold went on to a great career at stud, siring numerous graded stakes winners. Dancethruthedawn, an impeccably bred filly by Mr. Prospector-Dance Smartly, was a graded stakes winning at age four in Saratoga, N.Y., after her brilliant 3-year-old season.
Veteran trainer Frostad owns four Plate victories – Victor Cooley, Scatter the Gold, Dancethruthedawn and Eye of the Leopard – along with wins in most of Canada’s most important races. Three times he’s been voted Canada’s leading trainer and has conditioned four horses of the year titles. Following the death of her father, Ernie Samuel, Tammy took over the helm of Sam-Son and maintained its position as one of North America’s premier breeding and racing operations. Square Angel’s niche in thoroughbred history as not only an outstanding race filly, but also in the breeding shed. Her daughters have produced numerous graded stakes winners.
Standardbred electors were unable to separate the greatness of Burning Point and Invitro as both mares gained admission in the Female category.
Wesgate Crown dominated the Male Horse voting for the Simonds brothers, Paul and David, of Uxbridge, Ont. In the Veterans category, Silver Reign, who ruled the trotting scene in the late 1980s before her successful broodmare career, was owned by Eugene Forbes. Steve Condren put together three decades of remarkable performances while winning more than 6,600 races for earnings of over $109 million in to capture the Driver/Trainer category. He’s an O’Brien Award winner and also winner of the North American Cup with Goalie Jeff. In the Builder category Robert Burgess, a renown breeder and owner for more than four decades, is best known for introducing the great trotting sire Balanced Image as his Cantario Farms. His other outstanding horses include Frugal Gourmet, Real Desire, Amity Chief and Amigo Hall.
Burning Point, winner of O’Brien and Dan Patch awards, earned $3.1 million during her six-year career for the Cuzzins Stable of Delray Beach, Fla. She was bred by Fred Drouillard of Windsor, ON. Invitro, bred by Gord Irwin of Cobourg, Ont., retired in 2008 with earnings of over $2 million from 35 lifetime wins. She posted a 1:50 clocking at Woodbine.
Wesgate Crown enjoyed success on the racetrack ($2.5 in earnings) and in the breeding shed. He won an O’Brien as champion 2-year-old trotting colt in 1993. He competed often in Europe and won the major trotting races and two Breeders Crowns. His foals have earned over $15 million.
For the first time since 2003, the Hall of Fame will be inducting horses and people into the Legends category. Thoroughbred inductees include Mrs. Lily A. Livingston, breeder of two King’s Plate winners, and one of Canada’s leading breeders for more than 20 years at her Pontiac Stock Farm in Cobourg, Ont., and jockey Thomas H. Burns of Cedar Springs, Ont., who twice was North America’s leading jockey in the late 1890s. Standardbred pacer The Eel, known as “The Grey Ghost” was one of greats in the early 1900s, setting countless records both on the ice and on the half-mile tracks. W.J. Hyatt of Petrolia, Ont., was inducted in the Builders category. He was a groundbreaking entrepreneur. His best horse was Bob Lee. Hyatt was the man behind the founding of the Supertest Stakes for Canadian owned and bred two and three-year-olds.
The Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame induction ceremony will be held on Thursday, August 18, at the Mississauga Convention Centre on Derry Road.
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