Jose Valdivia Jr. (born December 8, 1974 in

Lima, Peru Lima ( ; ), originally founded as Ciudad de Los Reyes (City of The Kings) is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón, Rímac and Lurín Rivers, in the desert zone of the central coastal part of th ...

) is a jockey in

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the " United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, ...

Thoroughbred horse 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 ...

. The son of a top

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the souther ...

n jockey, he is the nephew of retired jockey

Fernando Toro Fernando Toro (born January 31, 1941, in Santiago, Chile) is a retired US Hall of Fame Thoroughbred horse racing jockey about whom Santa Anita Park called one of Southern California's most successful jockeys in the 1970s and '80s. On November 1 ...

and trainer, Juan Suarez. He and his family moved to the United States in 1989 and settled in the

West Palm Beach, Florida West Palm Beach is a city in and the county seat of Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. It is located immediately to the west of the adjacent Palm Beach, which is situated on a barrier island across the Lake Worth Lagoon. The populatio ...

area where his father worked as a trainer. In 2000, he married his wife Renee. The couple have two children, Siena and Luca. In 1994, Valdivia began his professional riding career as an apprentice at

Belmont Park Belmont Park is a major thoroughbred horse racing facility in the northeastern United States, located in Elmont, New York, just east of the New York City limits. It was opened on May 4, 1905. It is operated by the non-profit New York Raci ...

, earning his first win in just his third start. Riding for fellow Peruvian, trainer

Julio Canani Julio Canani (November 13, 1938 – February 5, 2021) was a Peruvian-born American horse trainer in Thoroughbred horse racing. He won three Breeders' Cup races. Biography Canani emigrated to the United States in 1954, and settled in Califor ...

, his first important win came aboard

Val Royal Val Royal (April 7, 1996 – October 17, 2008) was a French-bred Thoroughbred racehorse who competed successfully in France and the United States and was best known for winning the 2001 Breeders' Cup Mile. Background Val Royal was bred and r ...

when he won the 2001

Breeders' Cup Mile The Breeders' Cup Mile is a Grade 1 Weight for Age stakes race for thoroughbred racehorses three years old and up, run on a grass course. It has been conducted annually as part of the Breeders' Cup World Championships since the event's incept ...

and that year became a breakout year.

Year-end charts

References

Jose Valdivia Jr. at the NTRA
{{DEFAULTSORT:Valdivia, Jose Jr. 1974 births Living people American jockeys Peruvian emigrants to the United States