Delaware Park: 2000th win for O’Connell
Keiber Coa (left) and Carol Cedeno visit with Lina, a patient at Nemours Alfred I. duPont Hospital for Children on Tuesday, September 11. Photo by Chris Sobocinski.
From a Delaware Park release
Trainer Kathleen O’Connell notched career victory 2,000 at Delaware Park today. The milestone win came in the 6th race when Charlie Runion’s Wishful Quality won by a head in a $34,000 maiden special weight test. The 2-year-old Florida-bred daughter of Exclusive Quality was ridden by Hector Rafael Diaz, Jr. and returned $53.80 as the second longest shot in the field of six.
O’Connell posted her first career victory with Kim’s Lucky Spot at Detroit Racecourse in 1981. Other notable horses conditioned by the Michigan native include Blazing Sword, winner of the Grade III Calder Derby in 1997 and the Grade II Washington Park Handicap at Arlington Park in 2000; Watch Me Go, winner of the Tampa Bay Derby in 2011; Lady Shipman, second in the Grade Breeders’ Cup Sprint at Keeneland in 2015; and Stormy Embrace, winner of the Grade II Princess Rooney Stakes at Gulfstream Park on June 30th.
DELAWARE JOCKEYS VISIT CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL
Donning colorful jerseys and racing caps, Delaware Park jockeys brought the racing world alive for patients at Nemours Alfred I. duPont Hospital for Children yesterday. During the visit, each child received a collectible doll of the 2006 Kentucky Derby winner Barbaro, who won his first race in his career debut at Delaware Park and “A Day in the Life of a Horse of a Different Color” coloring book by Pierre Bellocq. The children also received a pair of racing goggles and other gifts from Delaware Park.
The jockeys’ visit was part of the national Childhood Cancer Awareness Month initiative organized by the Jockeys’ Guild. The visit to Nemours Alfred I. duPont Hospital for Children was organized by the Delaware Thoroughbred Racing Commission, Delaware Park, and the Delaware Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association.
