Plaudit was an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 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...

 racehorse

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...

. A descendant of English Triple Crown

Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing

The Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing consists of three races for three-year-old Thoroughbred horses. Winning all three of these Thoroughbred horse races is considered the greatest accomplishment of a Thoroughbred racehorse...

 champion, West Australian

West Australian (horse)

West Australian was a British-bred Thoroughbred racehorse who won the first Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing and the Ascot Gold Cup....

, Plaudit is best known for winning the 1898 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...

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Conditioned by future U.S. Racing 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...

 trainer Edward D. Brown

Edward D. Brown

Edward Dudley Brown was an African American born as a slave who rose to become a Belmont Stakes-winning jockey, a Kentucky Derby-winning horse trainer, and an owner of several of the top racehorses during the last decade of the 19th century, earning him induction into the United States Racing Hall...

, racing at age two Plaudit won four of his twelve starts. After finishing fourth in the Futurity Stakes at Sheepshead Bay Race Track

Sheepshead Bay Race Track

Sheepshead Bay Race Track was an American Thoroughbred horse racing facility built on the site of the Coney Island Jockey Club at Sheepshead Bay, New York...

, he was bought by noted Kentucky horseman, John E. Madden

John E. Madden

John Edward Madden was a prominent AmericanThoroughbred and Standardbred owner, breeder and trainer in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. He owned Hamburg Place Stud in Lexington, Kentucky and bred five Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes winners.He was inducted into the National...

 and in a race for older horses in September, defeated the 1896 Kentucky Derby winner Ben Brush. As a three-year-old, Plaudit was ridden by future U.S. Racing Hall of Fame 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:...

, Willie Simms

Willie Simms

Willie Simms was an American Hall of Fame thoroughbred horse racing jockey....

 in the 24th edition of the Kentucky Derby. Plaudit came from behind with a powerful stretch drive to catch the betting

Gambling

Gambling is the wagering of money or something of material value on an event with an uncertain outcome with the primary intent of winning additional money and/or material goods...

 favorite Lieber Karl and win by a nose.

In 1898 Plaudit won four of his eight races and finished second in the other four, notably in the Latonia Derby

Latonia Derby

The Latonia Derby was an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually from 1883 through 1937 at Latonia Race Track in Latonia, Kentucky. Open to three-year-old horses, for its first 52 years the Latonia Derby was contested at a mile and a half; in 1935, the race was shortened to a mile and a...

. His wins included a second defeat of Lieber Karl in the Clark Handicap

Clark Handicap

The Clark Handicap is an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually in late November/early December at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. Among the oldest races in the United States, it was first run in 1875, the year the racetrack opened for business...

. Retired at the end of the racing season, Plaudit stood at stud

Horse breeding

Horse breeding is reproduction in horses, and particularly the human-directed process of selective breeding of animals, particularly purebred horses of a given breed. Planned matings can be used to produce specifically desired characteristics in domesticated horses...

 at John Madden's Hamburg Place in Lexington, Kentucky

Lexington, Kentucky

Lexington is the second-largest city in Kentucky and the 63rd largest in the US. Known as the "Thoroughbred City" and the "Horse Capital of the World", it is located in the heart of Kentucky's Bluegrass region...

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Plaudit was from Cinderella who was also the mare of Hastings

Hastings (horse)

Hastings was an American Thoroughbred racehorse and stallion. Foaled in Versailles, Kentucky, and bred by Dr. J. D. Nest, he was sired by Spendthrift out of the imported Cinderella by Blue Ruin.Originally, Hastings was bought by David Gideon and John Daly at auction as a yearling for $2,800...

, the 1896 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...

 winner and Leading sire in North America

Leading sire in North America

The list below shows the leading sire of Thoroughbred racehorses in North America for each year since 1830. This is determined by the amount of prizemoney won by the sire's progeny during the year...

 in 1902 and 1908. While Plaudit never matched Hastings' success as a sire

Father

A father, Pop, Dad, or Papa, is defined as a male parent of any type of offspring. The adjective "paternal" refers to father, parallel to "maternal" for mother...

, he produced a dozen graded stakes race

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...

 winners including multiple stakes champion, King James

King James (horse)

King James was an American Thoroughbred racehorse. Bred by one of America's most important breeders, John E. Madden, King James was the son of 1898 Kentucky Derby winner, Plaudit...

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Plaudit died in 1919 and is buried in the Hamburg Place equine cemetery.