Job Dean Jessop (December 4, 1926 - January 30, 2001) was an American National Champion

Thoroughbred racing 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 ...

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 ...

. Born in

Logan, Utah Logan is a city in Cache County, Utah, United States. The 2020 United States Census, 2020 census recorded the population at 52,778. Logan is the county seat of Cache County and the principal city of the Logan metropolitan area, which includes Ca ...

, Jessop was eighteen when on August 9, 1944, as an apprentice jockey he won six races in one program at Ellis Park Racecourse in

Henderson, Kentucky Henderson is a home rule-class city along the Ohio River and the county seat of Henderson County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 29,781 at the 2020 U.S. census. It is part of the Evansville–Henderson, IN–KY Combined Statis ...

. In 1945 he won more races than any other jockey in the United States, finishing the year with 290 victories. His accomplishment was most impressive as a result of government wartime restrictions which had limited the racing year to approximately seven and one-half months. Of Jessop's four mounts in the

Kentucky Derby The Kentucky Derby () is an American Graded stakes race, Grade I stakes Thoroughbred racing, race run at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. The race is run by three-year-old Thoroughbreds at a distance of . Colt (horse), Colts and geldin ...

, his best result was two third-place finishes. In 1946, he was third on Hampden behind eventual Triple Crown winner,

Assault In the terminology of law, an assault is the act of causing physical harm or consent, unwanted physical contact to another person, or, in some legal definitions, the threat or attempt to do so. It is both a crime and a tort and, therefore, may ...

. Guiding the great

Hall of Fame A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or Wiktionary:fame, fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actu ...

mare

Gallorette Gallorette (1942–1959) was a Maryland-bred chestnut thoroughbred filly who became a Hall of Fame race horse. Sired by Challenger II, out of Gallette, Gallorette's damsire was Sir Gallahad III. Breeding Trainer Preston M. Burch bought Gallett ...

, he won the

Queens County Handicap The Queens County Handicap is an American Ungraded Thoroughbred horse race run annually during the second week of December at Aqueduct Racetrack in Queens, New York. Open to horses age three years and older, it is contested on dirt at a distance o ...

against male horses in 1947. In 1950, he won the

Ashland Stakes The Ashland Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually in early April at Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, Kentucky, United States. It and the Ashland Oaks, the Kentucky Association racetrack's predecessor race, were named fo ...

and the following year rode Ruhe to victory in the

Blue Grass Stakes The Blue Grass Stakes, currently the Toyota Blue Grass Stakes due to sponsorship by the Toyota Motor Corporation, is a horse race for 3-year-old Thoroughbreds held annually in April at Keeneland Racecourse in Lexington, Kentucky. The race is ru ...

, then finished third with the colt in that year's Derby. Among his other victories, Jessop rode in

Vancouver, British Columbia Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

, winning the 1961 B.C. Oaks with the

filly 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 ...

Be Famous. He was also the regular rider of Triplicate. Jessop retired from riding in 1970 and settled in

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

where for a short time he was involved with

training Training is teaching, or developing in oneself or others, any skills and knowledge or fitness that relate to specific useful competencies. Training has specific goals of improving one's capability, capacity, productivity and performance. I ...

horses. He died in 2001 in

Boerne Boerne ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Kendall County, Texas, United States, in the Texas Hill Country. Boerne is known for its German Texan, German-Texan history, named in honor of German author and satirist Ludwig Börne by the German Fo ...

, in

Kendall County, Texas Kendall County is a county located on the Edwards Plateau in the U.S. state of Texas. In 2020 census, its population was 44,279. Its county seat is Boerne. The county is named for George Wilkins Kendall, a journalist and Mexican–American ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jessop 1926 births 2001 deaths American jockeys American Champion jockeys Sportspeople from Logan, Utah Sportspeople from Boerne, Texas