Jean Cruguet
Encyclopedia
Jean Cruguet
Jean Cruguet (born March 8, 1939 in Agen
, Lot-et-Garonne
, France
) is an French
-American
thoroughbred horse racing
jockey
who won the United States Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing
.
At age five, Jean Cruguet was placed in an orphanage
after his father abandoned the family and his mother was unable to cope. From age ten to sixteen, he lived at a secondary school run by Roman Catholic priest
s where he says he was physically abused. At age sixteen, a friend of his grandfather offered the diminutive Cruguet work at a Thoroughbred race track
. His fledgling career as a jockey was interrupted by mandatory military service and he served in the French Army
during the Algerian War.
After being discharged from the army, Cruguet returned to thoroughbred flat racing
. He replaced army-bound jockey Yves Saint-Martin
at the stable run by prominent trainer
Francois Mathet. Once Saint-Martin was discharged from the army, Cruguet had to find new rides but met with only limited success. After meeting his future wife Denyse, a trainer and one of the pioneering woman in French racing, in 1965, they decided to emigrate to the United States. In Florida
, Cruguet was hired to ride for Horatio Luro
at Hialeah Park Race Track
and began to achieve success in the ensuing years. In 1969, he won a major Grade I
race aboard Arts and Letters
when he replaced Braulio Baeza
due to another commitment, riding the future Hall of Fame
colt to victory in the Metropolitan Handicap
at Belmont Park
.
In 2004, Jean Cruguet said Hoist The Flag
was the best horse he ever rode. http://www.ntra.com/video.aspx?id=18273. The 1970 U.S. Champion 2-year-old colt
, ridden by Cruguet in all his starts, went undefeated in his short career but in his 3 yr-old season was injured in March 1971 while preparing for the Wood Memorial Stakes
. The career-ending injury denied the colt a chance to try for the Triple Crown, a prospect of winning all three legs was something many think was possible.
Cruguet and his wife returned to race in Europe
for the 1972 season where he won important Group One
races such as the Prix Vermeille
and Poule d'Essai des Pouliches
in France, and the Champion Stakes
in England
. He rode the Champion San San in all her wins for trainer Angel Penna, Sr.
but missed being aboard the great filly
for her win in the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe
when he was sidelined by injury as a result of a racing accident. After finishing second in France's jockey standings for 1972, Cruguet and his wife returned to the United States.
In 1976, Jean Cruguet rode the two-year-old colt Seattle Slew
to victory in the Champagne Stakes
. The following year he achieved racing immortality aboard Seattle Slew. They won the Wood Memorial Stakes
and the Flamingo Stakes
en route to winning the Kentucky Derby
, Preakness Stakes
, and the Belmont Stakes
, thereby capturing American racing's prestigious Triple Crown. In a move still written about today, with 20 yards to go to the finish line in the Belmont Stakes, Cruguet stood up in the stirrups, raised his right arm over his head, and jubilantly gave the crowd a victory salute by waving his whip in the air.
In 1978, Cruguet was the regular jockey aboard Mac Diarmida
whose wins included the two most important North America
n turf
races with Europe
an competitors: the Canadian International Championship
at Woodbine Racetrack
in Toronto
, Canada
and the Washington, D.C. International at Laurel Park Racecourse in Laurel, Maryland
. Mac Diarmida was voted the 1978 Eclipse Award
for American Champion Male Turf Horse.
Jean Cruguet retired from riding at age 41 in July 1980 to join his wife as a full-time trainer in their own small stable, but he returned to riding two years later. His last major Grade I Stakes victory came aboard Hodges Bay in the 1989 Canadian International Stakes
at Woodbine Racetrack
. Retired and now living near Versailles, Kentucky
, Cruguet made guest appearances for many years in support of organizations such as Old Friends http://www.oldfriendsequine.org/index.shtml, a retirement and rescue facility for pensioned Thoroughbreds in Midway, Kentucky
. However, in recent years, he almost completely disappeared from the public eye because he was the sole caregiver for his wife Denyse, who was bedridden after suffering a debilitating stroke in 2003. She died at 80 at their home in Kentucky in September 2010.
Cruguet planned a one-race comeback at the Keeneland Racecourse Spring Meet in April 2011 at age 72. Slated to ride a three-year old filly trained by friend John Paul Pucek, he postponed his comeback attempt due to bad weather and concerns over the youth of the horse. He also planned to attempt a comeback during the 2011 Arlington Park meet as part of a special "Legends" race in support of the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund on August 12, but also had to withdraw from that event citing health concerns.[2}
Jean Cruguet (born March 8, 1939 in Agen
Agen
Agen is a commune in the Lot-et-Garonne department in Aquitaine in south-western France. It lies on the river Garonne southeast of Bordeaux. It is the capital of the department.-Economy:The town has a higher level of unemployment than the national average...
, Lot-et-Garonne
Lot-et-Garonne
Lot-et-Garonne is a department in the southwest of France named after the Lot and Garonne rivers.-History:Lot-et-Garonne is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
) is an French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
-American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
thoroughbred horse racing
Thoroughbred horse race
Thoroughbred horse racing is a worldwide sport and industry involving the racing of Thoroughbred horses. It is governed by different national bodies. There are two forms of the sport: Flat racing and National Hunt racing...
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:...
who won the United States Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing
United States Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing
In the United States, the "Triple Crown" is usually the Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing, a series of three Thoroughbred horse races for three-year-old horses run in May and early June of each year consisting of the Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes, and Belmont Stakes.While Daily Racing Form...
.
At age five, Jean Cruguet was placed in an orphanage
Orphanage
An orphanage is a residential institution devoted to the care of orphans – children whose parents are deceased or otherwise unable or unwilling to care for them...
after his father abandoned the family and his mother was unable to cope. From age ten to sixteen, he lived at a secondary school run by Roman Catholic priest
Priest
A priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities...
s where he says he was physically abused. At age sixteen, a friend of his grandfather offered the diminutive Cruguet work at a Thoroughbred race track
Race track
A race track is a purpose-built facility for racing of animals , automobiles, motorcycles or athletes. A race track may also feature grandstands or concourses. Some motorsport tracks are called speedways.A racetrack is a permanent facility or building...
. His fledgling career as a jockey was interrupted by mandatory military service and he served in the French Army
French Army
The French Army, officially the Armée de Terre , is the land-based and largest component of the French Armed Forces.As of 2010, the army employs 123,100 regulars, 18,350 part-time reservists and 7,700 Legionnaires. All soldiers are professionals, following the suspension of conscription, voted in...
during the Algerian War.
After being discharged from the army, Cruguet returned to thoroughbred flat racing
Flat racing
Flat racing is a form of Thoroughbred horse racing which is run over a level track at a predetermined distance. It differs from steeplechase racing which is run over hurdles...
. He replaced army-bound jockey Yves Saint-Martin
Yves Saint-Martin
Yves Saint-Martin is a retired champion jockey in French Thoroughbred horse racing. He is widely considered one of the greatest riders in French racing history....
at the stable run by prominent trainer
Horse trainer
In horse racing, a trainer prepares a horse for races, with responsibility for exercising it, getting it race-ready and determining which races it should enter...
Francois Mathet. Once Saint-Martin was discharged from the army, Cruguet had to find new rides but met with only limited success. After meeting his future wife Denyse, a trainer and one of the pioneering woman in French racing, in 1965, they decided to emigrate to the United States. In Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
, Cruguet was hired to ride for Horatio Luro
Horatio Luro
Horatio A. Luro was a thoroughbred horse racing trainer in the United States.Born in Argentina into a wealthy family that had been involved with horses for several generations, a suave young Horatio Luro grew up as something of a playboy and maintained this lifestyle after moving to the United...
at Hialeah Park Race Track
Hialeah Park Race Track
The Hialeah Park Race Track is a historic site in Hialeah, Florida. Its site covers 40 square blocks of central-east side Hialeah from Palm Avenue east to East 4th Avenue, and from East 22nd Street on the south to East 32nd Street on the north. On March 5, 1979, it was added to the U.S...
and began to achieve success in the ensuing years. In 1969, he won a major Grade I
Graded stakes race
A graded stakes race is a term applied since 1973 by the American Graded Stakes Committee of the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association to thoroughbred horse races in the United States and Canada to describe races that derive their name from the stake, or entry fee, owners must pay...
race aboard Arts and Letters
Arts and Letters
Arts and Letters was an American Hall of Fame Champion Thoroughbred racehorse.Owned and bred by American sportsman and noted philanthropist Paul Mellon, and trained by future Hall of Famer Elliott Burch, the colt began racing at age two...
when he replaced Braulio Baeza
Braulio Baeza
Braulio Baeza is an American Thoroughbred horse racing Hall of Fame jockey. He began racing in 1955 and in 1960, at the urging of agent Camilo Marin, moved to compete in the United States where at the Keeneland Race Course he won the very first he competed in.Braulio Baeza's success in America was...
due to another commitment, riding the future Hall of Fame
National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame
The National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame was founded in 1950 in Saratoga Springs, New York, to honor the achievements of American thoroughbred race horses, jockeys, and trainers...
colt to victory in the Metropolitan Handicap
Metropolitan Handicap
The Metropolitan Handicap, frequently called the "Met Mile," is an American Grade I Thoroughbred horse race held annually during the last week of May at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. Open to horses age three and older, it is contested on dirt over a distance of one mile .The Met Mile was first...
at Belmont Park
Belmont Park
Belmont Park is a major thoroughbred horse-racing facility located in Elmont in the Town of Hempstead in Nassau County, New York, on Long Island adjoining New York City. It first opened on May 4, 1905...
.
In 2004, Jean Cruguet said Hoist The Flag
Hoist The Flag
Hoist The Flag was an American Champion Thoroughbred racehorse. Bred by New York City Investment banker, John Schiff, he was out of the mare Wavy Navy, a daughter of the 1937 U.S. Triple Crown champion, War Admiral...
was the best horse he ever rode. http://www.ntra.com/video.aspx?id=18273. The 1970 U.S. Champion 2-year-old colt
Eclipse Award for Outstanding 2-Year-Old Male Horse
The American Champion Two-Year-Old Male Horse is an American Thoroughbred horse racing honor awarded annually in Thoroughbred flat racing. It became part of the Eclipse Awards program in 1971....
, ridden by Cruguet in all his starts, went undefeated in his short career but in his 3 yr-old season was injured in March 1971 while preparing for the Wood Memorial Stakes
Wood Memorial Stakes
The Wood Memorial Stakes is an American flat Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds held annually at Aqueduct Racetrack in Jamaica, New York. It is currently a Grade I race run over a distance of 9 furlongs on dirt....
. The career-ending injury denied the colt a chance to try for the Triple Crown, a prospect of winning all three legs was something many think was possible.
Cruguet and his wife returned to race in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
for the 1972 season where he won important Group One
Group One
Group One or Group 1 is the term used for the highest level of Thoroughbred and Standardbred stakes races in many countries. Group One races may be run under handicap conditions in Australia but in Europe weight-for-age conditions always apply. Races may be also restricted to age groups or a...
races such as the Prix Vermeille
Prix Vermeille
The Prix Vermeille is a Group 1 flat horse race in France which is open to thoroughbred fillies and mares aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 2,400 metres , and it is scheduled to take place each year in September.-History:The event was established in 1897, and it...
and Poule d'Essai des Pouliches
Poule d'Essai des Pouliches
The Poule d'Essai des Pouliches, sometimes referred to as the French 1,000 Guineas, is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbred fillies...
in France, and the Champion Stakes
Champion Stakes
The Champion Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain which is open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Ascot over a distance of 1 mile and 2 furlongs , and it is scheduled to take place each year in October...
in England
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. He rode the Champion San San in all her wins for trainer Angel Penna, Sr.
Angel Penna, Sr.
Angel A. Penna, Sr. was an Argentine-born U. S. Racing Hall of Fame Thoroughbred horse trainer. Penna was an international trainer who worked and raced on three continents...
but missed being aboard the great filly
Filly
A filly is a young female horse too young to be called a mare. There are several specific definitions in use.*In most cases filly is a female horse under the age of four years old....
for her win in the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe
Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe
The Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe is a Group 1 flat horse race in France which is open to thoroughbreds aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 2,400 metres , and it is scheduled to take place each year, usually on the first Sunday in October.Popularly referred to as the...
when he was sidelined by injury as a result of a racing accident. After finishing second in France's jockey standings for 1972, Cruguet and his wife returned to the United States.
In 1976, Jean Cruguet rode the two-year-old colt Seattle Slew
Seattle Slew
Seattle Slew was an American Thoroughbred race horse who won the United States Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing in 1977, the tenth of eleven horses to accomplish the feat. He remains the only horse to win the Triple Crown while undefeated. In the Blood-Horse magazine List of the Top 100 U.S...
to victory in the Champagne Stakes
Champagne Stakes (USA)
The Champagne Stakes is an American Grade I Thoroughbred horse race for two-year-old horses. The race is run at a distance of one mile on the dirt at Belmont Park in October each year. It is nested exclusively by colts....
. The following year he achieved racing immortality aboard Seattle Slew. They won the Wood Memorial Stakes
Wood Memorial Stakes
The Wood Memorial Stakes is an American flat Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds held annually at Aqueduct Racetrack in Jamaica, New York. It is currently a Grade I race run over a distance of 9 furlongs on dirt....
and the Flamingo Stakes
Flamingo Stakes
The Flamingo Stakes was an American Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds held annually in March at the Hialeah Park Race Track in Hialeah, Florida. Run over a distance of nine furlongs, the inaugural race took place in 1926 at the Tampa, Florida racetrack...
en route to winning the Kentucky Derby
Kentucky Derby
The Kentucky Derby is a Grade I stakes race for three-year-old Thoroughbred horses, held annually in Louisville, Kentucky, United States on the first Saturday in May, capping the two-week-long Kentucky Derby Festival. The race is one and a quarter mile at Churchill Downs. Colts and geldings carry...
, Preakness Stakes
Preakness Stakes
The Preakness Stakes is an American flat Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds held on the third Saturday in May each year at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland. It is a Grade I race run over a distance of 9.5 furlongs on dirt. Colts and geldings carry 126 pounds ; fillies 121 lb...
, and the Belmont Stakes
Belmont Stakes
The Belmont Stakes is an American Grade I stakes Thoroughbred horse race held every June at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. It is a 1.5-mile horse race, open to three year old Thoroughbreds. Colts and geldings carry a weight of 126 pounds ; fillies carry 121 pounds...
, thereby capturing American racing's prestigious Triple Crown. In a move still written about today, with 20 yards to go to the finish line in the Belmont Stakes, Cruguet stood up in the stirrups, raised his right arm over his head, and jubilantly gave the crowd a victory salute by waving his whip in the air.
In 1978, Cruguet was the regular jockey aboard Mac Diarmida
Mac Diarmida
Mac Diarmida was an American Thoroughbred Champion racehorse.-Background:Mac Diarmida was bred by John Hartigan at his Cashel Stud farm in Ocala, Florida. Sired by Minnesota Mac, he was out of the mare Flying Tammie, a daughter of the 1958 Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes winner, Tim Tam.As a...
whose wins included the two most important 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...
n turf
Grass
Grasses, or more technically graminoids, are monocotyledonous, usually herbaceous plants with narrow leaves growing from the base. They include the "true grasses", of the Poaceae family, as well as the sedges and the rushes . The true grasses include cereals, bamboo and the grasses of lawns ...
races with Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an competitors: the Canadian International Championship
Canadian International Stakes
The Canadian International Stakes is a $2 million Grade I Canadian stakes race on Turf for thoroughbred racehorses three years of age and up held annually in October at Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto, Ontario....
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...
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...
, Canada
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...
and the Washington, D.C. International at Laurel Park Racecourse in Laurel, Maryland
Laurel, Maryland
Laurel is a city in northern Prince George's County, Anne Arundel County, and Howard County, Maryland, United States, located midway between Washington, D.C. and Baltimore. Incorporated in 1870, the city maintains a historic district including its Main Street...
. Mac Diarmida was voted the 1978 Eclipse Award
Eclipse Award
The Eclipse Award is an American thoroughbred horse racing award named after the 18th century British racehorse and sire, Eclipse. The Eclipse Awards, honoring the champions of the sport, are sponsored by the National Thoroughbred Racing Association , Daily Racing Form and the National Turf Writers...
for American Champion Male Turf Horse.
Jean Cruguet retired from riding at age 41 in July 1980 to join his wife as a full-time trainer in their own small stable, but he returned to riding two years later. His last major Grade I Stakes victory came aboard Hodges Bay in the 1989 Canadian International Stakes
Canadian International Stakes
The Canadian International Stakes is a $2 million Grade I Canadian stakes race on Turf for thoroughbred racehorses three years of age and up held annually in October at Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto, Ontario....
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...
. Retired and now living near Versailles, Kentucky
Versailles, Kentucky
As of the census of 2000, there were 7,511 people, 3,160 households, and 2,110 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 3,330 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 88.18% White, 8.67% African American, 0.15% Native American, 0.35%...
, Cruguet made guest appearances for many years in support of organizations such as Old Friends http://www.oldfriendsequine.org/index.shtml, a retirement and rescue facility for pensioned Thoroughbreds in Midway, Kentucky
Midway, Kentucky
Midway is a city in Woodford County, Kentucky, United States. Its population was 1,620 at the 2000 census. It is located midway between Frankfort and Lexington along the single-track railroad between them. It is part of the Lexington-Fayette Metropolitan Statistical Area. The town is home to a...
. However, in recent years, he almost completely disappeared from the public eye because he was the sole caregiver for his wife Denyse, who was bedridden after suffering a debilitating stroke in 2003. She died at 80 at their home in Kentucky in September 2010.
Cruguet planned a one-race comeback at the Keeneland Racecourse Spring Meet in April 2011 at age 72. Slated to ride a three-year old filly trained by friend John Paul Pucek, he postponed his comeback attempt due to bad weather and concerns over the youth of the horse. He also planned to attempt a comeback during the 2011 Arlington Park meet as part of a special "Legends" race in support of the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund on August 12, but also had to withdraw from that event citing health concerns.[2}