Elliott Makes 4000
Many would say that Steward Elliott was born to be a jockey, following in his father’s footsteps and having support from a mother who found her passion in show horses. Born on 1 march 1965, in Canada, Steward Elliott began his career as a jockey in 1981, at the age of sixteen. As most jockeys do, Elliott dreamed of success and victory. On Sunday, 18 January 2008, Elliott crowned his career, exceeding his own expectations once again by raking in his four thousandth victory.
Steward Elliott has been extremely fortunate during his career, being associated with a number of successful horses and has recently been teamed up with wonderful horses such as Bold Union, Silent Valor and West Side Bernie. But the horse he will always be remembered for is Smarty Jones. Elliott rode him in all his career starts including their spectacular wins in the Preakness Stakes and Kentucky Derby in 2004. They missed out on Triple Crown glory by a few inches, when Birdstone managed to slip past Smarty Jones in the Belmont Stakes, despite the courageous effort put in by both horse and rider.
On Sunday, in front of hundreds of spectators at Philadelphia Park Casino and Racetrack, Jakes’s Bandaid gave a valiant performance and delivered Elliott his four thousandth victory. It is a milestone in the career of the jockey, who was beaming with pride and accomplishment after the race. In total, his winning horses have earned sixty-nine million dollars in purse money and he is known as the leading rider at Philadelphia Park. Elliott’s agent, Joe Rosen, confirmed that as Elliott wants to race closer to home, he will be remaining at Philadelphia Park. Previously riding many horses for Steve Asmussen has kept Elliott at Aqueduct for long periods at a time, but since Asmussen has been giving Ramon Dominguez increasingly more opportunities, Elliott has decided that he no longer needs to remain at Aqueduct.
Steward Elliott has carved his name into horse racing history and has enjoyed many successes and unforgettable moments along the way. Reaching the four thousandth mark is a magnificent achievement, and no doubt his fans will be hoping for five thousand before he decides to retire. But for now, he can look back at a wonderful horse racing career, and look towards the future with confidence and new goals.
