Gallant Bloom Handicap
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The Gallant Bloom Stakes is a
Grade II In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...
American
Thoroughbred horse race Thoroughbred racing is a 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 jump racing, the latter known as National Hunt racing in ...
for
fillies A filly is a female horse that is too young to be called a mare. There are two specific definitions in use: *In most cases, a ''filly'' is a female horse under four years old. *In some nations, such as the United Kingdom and the United States, th ...
and
mares A mare is an adult female horse or other equine. In most cases, a mare is a female horse over the age of three, and a filly is a female horse three and younger. In Thoroughbred horse racing, a mare is defined as a female horse more than four y ...
that are three years old and older run over a distance of
furlong A furlong is a measure of distance in imperial units and United States customary units equal to one-eighth of a mile, equivalent to any of 660 foot (unit), feet, 220 yards, 40 rod (unit), rods, 10 chain (unit), chains, or a ...
s on the dirt held annually in late September at
Belmont Park Belmont Park is a thoroughbred racing, thoroughbred horse racetrack in Elmont, New York, just east of New York City limits best known for hosting the Belmont Stakes, the final leg of the American Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing (United Stat ...
in
Elmont, New York Elmont is an unincorporated Hamlet (New York), hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) located in northwestern Hempstead, New York, Hempstead in Nassau County, New York, Nassau County, New York, United States, along its border with the borough ...
. It has been run at nearby
Aqueduct Racetrack Aqueduct Racetrack is a Thoroughbred horse racing facility and casino in the South Ozone Park, Queens, South Ozone Park and Jamaica, Queens, Jamaica neighborhoods of Queens, New York City, United States. Aqueduct is the only racetrack within ...
since 2022 due to construction at Belmont.


History

The event is named in honor of Gallant Bloom who won the
Eclipse Award The Eclipse Award is an American Thoroughbred horse racing award named after the 18th-century British racehorse and sire, Eclipse. An Eclipse Award Trophy is presented to the winner in each division. The trophy is made by a few small selected A ...
for Outstanding Two-Year-Old Filly champion of 1968, the 1969
American Champion Three-Year-Old Filly The American Champion Three-Year-Old Filly is an American Thoroughbred horse racing honor awarded annually to a female horse in Thoroughbred flat racing. It became part of the Eclipse Awards program in 1971. The award originated in 1936 when both ...
and the 1969
American Champion Older Female Horse The Eclipse Award for Champion Older Dirt Female Horse is an American Thoroughbred horse racing honor awarded annually to a filly or mare, four years old and up, for performances on dirt and main track racing surfaces. In 1971, it became part of the ...
. In ''
The Blood-Horse ''The Blood-Horse'' (also referred to simply as ''Blood-Horse'' and displayed on its nameplate in upright all-capital letters without hyphenation as BLOODHORSE) is a news magazine that originated in 1916 as a monthly bulletin of the Thoroughbred ...
'' ranking of the top 100 U.S. thoroughbred champions of the 20th Century, Gallant Bloom is ranked #79. The event was inaugurated on 30 August 1992 at
Saratoga Race Course Saratoga Race Course is a Thoroughbred horse racing track located on Union Avenue in Saratoga Springs, New York, Saratoga Springs, New York (state), New York, United States. Opened in 1863, it is often considered to be the oldest major sporting v ...
as a race for three-year-old fillies over six furlongs and was won by the Canadian bred filly Apelia, who defeated the Grade I
Frizette Stakes The Frizette Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race for two-year-old fillies raced annually at Belmont Park in October. It is currently a Grade I stakes race at a distance of one mile. The Frizette is the female counterpart of the Champagn ...
winner Preach by lengths. Later, in 2014 Apelia would be honored into the
Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame The Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame was established in 1976 to honour those who have made a significant contribution to the sport of harness racing, harness and Thoroughbred racing, Thoroughbred horse racing in Canada. It is located at Woodbine ...
. After a one-year break, the Gallant Bloom resumed in 1994 at Belmont Park with handicap conditions for fillies and mares. In 1995 the distance of the event was increased to
furlong A furlong is a measure of distance in imperial units and United States customary units equal to one-eighth of a mile, equivalent to any of 660 foot (unit), feet, 220 yards, 40 rod (unit), rods, 10 chain (unit), chains, or a ...
s. In 1997 the event was classified as Grade III and was upgraded to Grade II in 2001. The quality of the entrants for the event has justified its high status. The 2007
Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies The Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies is a -mile thoroughbred horse race on dirt (although the distance has varied, depending on the configuration of the host track) for two-year-old fillies run annually since 1984 at a different racetrack in the Un ...
winner
Indian Blessing Indian Blessing (foaled April 9, 2005, in Kentucky) is an American Thoroughbred racehorse who was the American Champion Two-Year-Old Filly in 2007 and Champion Female Sprint Horse in 2008. Background Indian Blessing was bred by and raced for Pa ...
won this event twice and is the only dual winner to date. In 2008 Indian Blessing went onto be crowned
American Champion Female Sprint Horse The American Champion Sprint Female Horse award is an American Thoroughbred horse racing honor awarded annually to the top female horse in sprint races usually run at a distance of 6 or 7 furlongs. This category honoring female sprinters became pa ...
. In 2022 the event was moved to
Aqueduct Racetrack Aqueduct Racetrack is a Thoroughbred horse racing facility and casino in the South Ozone Park, Queens, South Ozone Park and Jamaica, Queens, Jamaica neighborhoods of Queens, New York City, United States. Aqueduct is the only racetrack within ...
due to infield tunnel and redevelopment work at
Belmont Park Belmont Park is a thoroughbred racing, thoroughbred horse racetrack in Elmont, New York, just east of New York City limits best known for hosting the Belmont Stakes, the final leg of the American Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing (United Stat ...
. The race also changed from handicap to weight-for-age conditions with allowances.


Records

Speed record: * furlongs: 1:14.71 – Dust and Diamonds (2012) Margins: * lengths – Frank's Rockette (2020) Most wins: * 2 –
Indian Blessing Indian Blessing (foaled April 9, 2005, in Kentucky) is an American Thoroughbred racehorse who was the American Champion Two-Year-Old Filly in 2007 and Champion Female Sprint Horse in 2008. Background Indian Blessing was bred by and raced for Pa ...
(2008, 2009) Most wins by a
jockey A jockey is someone who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase (horse racing), steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing. The word "jockey" originated from England and was used ...
: * 5 –
John Velazquez John R. Velazquez (born November 24, 1971) is a Puerto Rican jockey in Thoroughbred horse race, Thoroughbred horse racing. He began his career in Puerto Rico and moved to New York in 1990. In 2004 and 2005 he was the United States Champion Jockey ...
(1997, 2001, 2004, 2009, 2016) Most wins by a trainer: * 4 – Steven M. Asmussen (2004, 2012, 2013, 2018) Most wins by an owner: * 2 – Patti & Hal Earnhardt III (2008, 2009) * 2 – Mary & Chester Broman Sr. (2014, 2017)


Winners

''Notes:''
† In 2023, Caramel Swirl originally finished third but was placed first when the top two finishers, Sterling Silver and Headland, were both disqualified for interference.


See also

*
List of American and Canadian Graded races The list of American and Canadian Graded races is a list of Thoroughbred horse races in the United States and Canada that meet the Graded stakes race, graded stakes standards maintained by the American Graded Stakes Committee of the Thoroughbred Ow ...


References

{{reflist, 2 Graded stakes races in the United States Sprint category horse races for fillies and mares Horse races in New York (state) Belmont Park Horse races established in 1992 1992 establishments in New York (state) Grade 2 stakes races in the United States