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{{succession box | before = [[Bruce Jenner]] | title = [[Associated Press Athlete of the Year|Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year]] | years = [[1977 in sports|1977]] | after = [[Ron Guidry]]}}
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Revision as of 01:21, 16 June 2008

Steve Cauthen
OccupationJockey
Career wins2,794
Major racing wins
Affectionately Handicap (1977)
Busanda Stakes (1977)
Excelsior Breeders’ Cup Handicap (1977)
United States Triple Crown (1978)
United Nations Handicap (1978)
2,000 Guineas (1979)
1,000 Guineas (1980)
Ascot Gold Cup (1984 & 1987)
Epsom Derby (1985 & 1987)
Middle Park Stakes (1983, 1987, 1989, 1992)
King George VI & Queen Elizabeth Stakes (1987)
Epsom Oaks (1985, 1988, 1989)
St. Leger Stakes (1985, 1987, 1989)
Grand Prix de Paris (1987 & 1990)
Prix du Jockey Club (1989)
Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud (1983-1986)
Grosser Preis von Baden (1983 & 1985)
Irish Derby (1989)
Irish Oaks (1988 & 1991)
Derby Italiano (1991)
Gran Premio del Jockey Club (1984)
Racing awards
United States Champion Jockey by earnings (1977)
Eclipse Award for Outstanding Apprentice Jockey (1977)
Eclipse Award for Outstanding Jockey (1977)
George Woolf Memorial Jockey Award (1984)
British Champion Jockey (1984, 1985, 1987)
Honours
Associated Press Athlete of the Year (1977)
Sports Illustrated - Sportsman of the Year (1978)
United States Racing Hall of Fame (1994)
Significant horses
Affirmed, Old Vic, Gold and Ivory, Triptych, Pebbles, Oh So Sharp, Slip Anchor, Reference Point, Saumarez, Never So Bold, Indian Skimmer

Steve Cauthen (born May 1, 1960 in Covington, Kentucky) is an American jockey.

Cauthen, the son of a trainer and a farrier, grew up in Walton, Kentucky around horses, which (along with his small size) made race-riding a logical career choice. He rode his first race on May 12, 1976 at Churchill Downs; he finished last, riding King of Swat. He rode his first winner (Red Pipe) less than a week later. His rise to prominence was meteoric; he was the nation's leader in race wins in 1977 with 487. In only his second year of riding, he became the first jockey to win $6 million in a single season on the day in December, 1977 he rode Little Happiness (three-year-old filly) in the sixth race at Aqueduct Racetrack. After that, he was called "The Six Million Dollar Man," and "Stevie Wonder."

He won the Eclipse Award for Outstanding Apprentice Jockey and the Eclipse Award for Outstanding Jockey in the United States and was selected as Sportsman of the Year by Sports Illustrated, as well as being named as ABC's Wide World of Sports Athlete of the Year. In 1978 he became the youngest jockey to ever win the Triple Crown, riding Affirmed.

He was voted the prestigious George Woolf Memorial Jockey Award in 1984 that honors a rider whose career and personal conduct exemplifies the very best example of participants in the sport of thoroughbred racing.

However, as he left his teens and matured, he had increasing problems making weight. In 1979 he moved to England, where jockeys normally compete at higher weights, and became a highly successful rider there. His move and first ride were very high profile in the UK. His very first ride in the UK resulted in a winner, when Marquee Universal, trained by Barry Hills won the Grand Foods Handicap at Salisbury Racecourse on April 7th 1979. Cauthen was British Champion Jockey three times, and won English classic races ten times, including the 2,000 Guineas, the Epsom Derby twice, and the St. Leger Stakes three times. He also won the Irish Oaks twice and in 1989 rode European Horse of the Year, Old Vic to victory in the 1989 French Derby and the Irish Derby. In 1991 he won the Derby Italiano.

After he finished his riding career, he returned to Kentucky, where he is an executive at Turfway Park, the nearest major track to his hometown. Cauthen was inducted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 1994. He married his wife Amy, also a Kentucky native, in 1992 and they have three daughters.

Major winners

United Kingdom Great Britain


France France


Germany Germany


Republic of Ireland Ireland


Italy Italy


United States United States

References

Preceded by Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year
1977
Succeeded by