Kevin Krigger, the first black jockey in the Derby since 2000, will be aboard Doug O’Neill’s Goldencents, considered a much stronger contender than last year’s winner, I’ll Have Another. A little known jockey and a lightly regarded horse pulled off an upset victory for trainer O’Neill at last year’s Kentucky Derby. O’Neill believes Goldencents can follow a similar path to victory.
Only six trainers have won consecutive Derbies in 138 years, and no black jockey has won since 1902. The 29-year-old Krigger hails from St. Croix, Virgin Islands. Krigger figures to pick up a lot more fans of his own if he can win the Derby, a feat no black jockeyhas accomplished since Jimmy Winkfield won his second straight in 1902. He keeps a picture of Winkfield in his locker.
In 1875, black jockeys accounted for 13 of the 15 riders in the Derby’s first running. They won 15 of the first 28 Derbies. But by 1903, business began drying up as white owners and trainers relied less and less on them. Marlon St. Julien was the Derby’s first black jockey in 79 years when he rode Curule to a seventh-place finish in 2000.
Of some 1,000 jockeys aboard thoroughbreds in the U.S., only 50 are black, according to the Jockey Guild.
“I think the reason is there aren’t many African-Americans interested in riding horses,” Krigger said. “And it’s really hard to get into the Kentucky Derby for any jockey, whether you’re African-American, Hispanic, white . . . it doesn’t matter what race or color you are. There are 20 horses. It’s not a race that is meant for everyone. Usually, only the top riders get in.”
“I’ve been watching the Derby probably more than the majority of riders my age,” said Krigger, who came to the U.S. in 2001.
“I want to win the Derby because that’s something that I want to do,” Krigger said. “Being African-American is just a part of it.”
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