When did Secretariat win the Triple Crown?

Secretariat, one of the greatest horses to ever see the track, rescued the Triple Crown from its first extended stagnation in 1973.

The year was 1973, and Triple Crown hopes were fading. The most recent Triple Crown winner, Citation, had died a few years before, so no remnant of a winner was still around. The crown had gone unclaimed for 25 straight years, but not through a lack of trying. Between 1958 and 1973 alone, 6 horses won the Derby and Preakness, but for one reason or another fell short in the Belmont.

Secretariat came into the Triple Crown with a lot of weight on his shoulders. He had been named best two-year-old colt the year before, and syndicated for a then-record amount of money. Though he did not live up to the hype for every one of the prep races, he was still well-regarded enough to go off as the Derby favorite.

Turns out he was just getting started. Secretariat won the Kentucky Derby in a time of 1:59 2/5. That was, and remains, the fastest time ever recorded in the race. His run in the Preakness was a bit more controversial, as the track’s electronic timing system malfunctioned. The time was initially recorded as a (relatively) lackluster 1:55. But multiple people disagreed, and controversy ensued. In 2012, 39 years after the fact, the Maryland Racing commission reviewed footage from the race and officially ruled the timing invalid. Secretariat was then credited with a time of 1:53 which also set, and remains, the stakes record. In the Belmont Stakes, where so many had faltered, Secretariat was at his best. His final time of 2:24, and his margin of victory (31 lengths) remain unmatched. Nobody has gotten close.

Secretariat’s sweep in 1973 kickstarted a very exciting seven years for racing. By the time the calendar hit 1980 there had been three Triple Crown winners, and the sport was revived. Can that happen this decade? We’ll have to wait and see.

Next: 20 short stories about the 2018 Kentucky Derby horses

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