James S. "Jim" McAleney (born August 15, 1969 in Fort St. John, British Columbia

Fort St. John, British Columbia

The City of Fort St. John is a city in northeastern British Columbia, Canada. A member municipality of the Peace River Regional District, the city covers an area of about 22 km² with 22,000 residents . Located at Mile 47, it is one of the largest cities along the Alaska Highway. Originally...

) is a Canadian

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

 Thoroughbred

Thoroughbred

The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word thoroughbred is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed...

 horse racing

Horse racing

Horse racing is an equestrian sport that has a long history. Archaeological records indicate that horse racing occurred in ancient Babylon, Syria, and Egypt. Both chariot and mounted horse racing were events in the ancient Greek Olympics by 648 BC...

 jockey

Jockey

A jockey is an athlete who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing.-Etymology:...

.

A native of Fort St. John, British Columbia

Fort St. John, British Columbia

The City of Fort St. John is a city in northeastern British Columbia, Canada. A member municipality of the Peace River Regional District, the city covers an area of about 22 km² with 22,000 residents . Located at Mile 47, it is one of the largest cities along the Alaska Highway. Originally...

, Jim McAleney began his career as a jockey in Western Canada

Western Canada

Western Canada, also referred to as the Western provinces and commonly as the West, is a region of Canada that includes the four provinces west of the province of Ontario.- Provinces :...

 where in 1986 at Northlands Park

Northlands Park

Northlands Park is the "Alberta A circuit" horse racing track at Northlands in Edmonton, Alberta. The horse racing season generally consists of a spring harness meet from February/March, a Thoroughbred meet from May/June to September/October and a fall harness meet to mid-December. Northlands Park...

 in Edmonton, Alberta he got his first win. The following year, he competed in the West as well as in Ontario

Ontario

Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....

. For the year he finished sixth in wins among all jockeys in North America

North America

North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...

, a performance that earned him the Sovereign Award for Outstanding Apprentice Jockey

Sovereign Award for Outstanding Apprentice Jockey

The Sovereign Award for Outstanding Apprentice Jockey is an Canadian Thoroughbred horse racing honor. Created in 1975 by the Jockey Club of Canada., it is part of the Sovereign Awards program and is awarded annually to a jockey undergoing their apprenticeship....

.

Based in Toronto

Toronto

Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...

 in 1988, he raced at Greenwood Raceway

Greenwood Raceway

Greenwood Raceway is a defunct horse racing facility in Toronto.Inaugurated in 1874 as Woodbine Race Course at the foot of Woodbine Avenue and Lake Ontario, it was owned and operated by two gentlemen named Pardee and Howell. Within a few years financial problems resulted in the property reverting...

 and at Woodbine Racetrack

Woodbine Racetrack

Woodbine Racetrack is a Canadian racetrack for Thoroughbred horse races located at 555 Rexdale Blvd. in the city of Toronto, Ontario. It is the only horseracing track in North America which stages, or is capable of staging, thoroughbred and standardbred horseracing programs on the same day...

 and repeated as Champion apprentice that year.

Consistenly among the top jockeys in Ontario, Jim McAleney has also won races Monmouth Park and Keeneland Race Course and other tracks in the United States. In 2001, he won his first Canadian Classic Race when he rode Sweetest Thing to victory in the Breeders' Stakes

Breeders' Stakes

The Breeders' Stakes is a Canadian stakes race for Thoroughbred race horses first run in 1889. Since 1959 it has been the third race in the Canadian Triple Crown for three-year-olds...

.

In 2004, McAleney returned to Northlands Park to compete in the Canadian Derby

Canadian Derby

The Canadian Derby is a Canadian Thoroughbred horse race run annually at Northlands Park in Edmonton, Alberta. A Grade III event held near the end of August, it is open to thee-year-old horses and is raced on dirt over a distance of one and three-eights miles...

, winning the race aboard Organ Grinder. In 2007, he broke his leg two days before the start of the season and was out until August 15. On his return, he won Woodbine Racetrack's Victoriana Stakes

Victoriana Stakes

The Victoriana Stakes is a Canadian Thoroughbred horse race run annually in early to mid August at Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto, Ontario. An Ontario Sire Stakes, it is a restricted race for fillies and mares, age three and older...

 for a record fifth time.

As at August 6, 2008 McAleney is the leading jockey at Woodbine Racetrack.

Year-end charts

{|class="wikitable sortable"
|-
!Chart (2000–present)
!Peak
position
|-
|National Earnings List for Jockeys 2000
| style="text-align:center;"|83
|-
|National Earnings List for Jockeys 2001
| style="text-align:center;"|90
|-
|National Earnings List for Jockeys 2002
| style="text-align:center;"|33
|-
|National Earnings List for Jockeys 2003
| style="text-align:center;"|27
|-
|National Earnings List for Jockeys 2004
| style="text-align:center;"|31
|-
|National Earnings List for Jockeys 2005
| style="text-align:center;"|34
|-
|National Earnings List for Jockeys 2006
| style="text-align:center;"|39
|-
|National Earnings List for Jockeys 2008
| style="text-align:center;"|21
|-
|National Earnings List for Jockeys 2009
| style="text-align:center;"|36