Snow Knight (28 February 1971 – 15 September 1992) was a

Thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed. Thoroughbreds are ...

racehorse Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic ...

who won Britain's most prestigious race in 1974, the

Derby Derby ( ) is a city and unitary authority area in Derbyshire, England. It lies on the banks of the River Derwent in the south of Derbyshire, which is in the East Midlands Region. It was traditionally the county town of Derbyshire. Derby gain ...

, then the following year earned an

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 that is made by a few small selected America ...

as the American Champion Male Turf Horse.

Background

Snow Knight was bred by J. A. Claude Lilley, a

textile manufacturer The textile industry is primarily concerned with the design, production and distribution of yarn, cloth and clothing. The raw material may be natural, or synthetic using products of the chemical industry. Industry process Cotton manufacturi ...

and the proprietor of Quarry Stud on Duffield Bank in Makeney,

Derbyshire Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands, England. It includes much of the Peak District National Park, the southern end of the Pennine range of hills and part of the National Forest. It borders Greater Manchester to the no ...

. Lilley had owned and raced Pretendre, sire of the 1971

Kentucky Derby The Kentucky Derby is a horse race held annually in Louisville, Kentucky, United States, almost always on the first Saturday in May, capping the two-week-long Kentucky Derby Festival. The competition is a Grade I stakes race for three-yea ...

and

Preakness Stakes The Preakness Stakes is an American thoroughbred horse race held on Armed Forces Day which is also the third Saturday in May each year at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland. It is a Grade I race run over a distance of 9.5 furlongs ...

winner,

Canonero II Cañonero II (April 24, 1968 – November 11, 1981) was a Venezuelan champion Thoroughbred race horse that may be best remembered for winning the first two legs of the 1971 U.S. Triple Crown, the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness Stakes. After t ...

. Snow Knight's dam was Snow Blossom, a daughter of Flush Royal, winner of England's Great Yorkshire Stakes and the

Prix Noailles The Prix Noailles is a Group 3 flat horse race in France open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run over a distance of 2,100 metres (about 1 mile and 2½ furl ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...

. His sire was the speedy runner Firestreak who had been owned by

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

lawyer A lawyer is a person who practices law. The role of a lawyer varies greatly across different legal jurisdictions. A lawyer can be classified as an advocate, attorney, barrister, canon lawyer, civil law notary, counsel, counselor, solici ...

Neil F. Phillips, whose wife Sharon purchased Snow Knight at auction as a yearling for £5,200.

Racing career

Europe

Trained by Peter Nelson, at the age of two Snow Knight made five starts, winning two and finishing second twice. At three, in the

trial races for the Derby In law, a trial is a coming together of parties to a dispute, to present information (in the form of evidence) in a tribunal, a formal setting with the authority to adjudicate claims or disputes. One form of tribunal is a court. The tribunal, ...

, he finished second in the Ladbrokes Classic Trial Stakes at Sandown Park and third in the Lingfield Derby Trial. Small injuries slowed him but he would fight back. Always a fractious colt, in the paddock at

Epsom Downs Racecourse Epsom Downs is a Grade 1 racecourse on the hills associated with Epsom in Surrey, England which is used for thoroughbred horse racing. The "Downs" referred to in the name are part of the North Downs. The course, which has a crowd capacity of ...

, Snow Knight threw jockey Brian Taylor and at the starting gate was still fighting his handlers. Sent off at odds of 50:1, he ran in the middle of the pack until the field made the turn at Tattenham Corner, when he sped to the lead and won by two lengths.

North America

In the fall of 1974, Snow Knight was sold for a reported C$1 million to Canada's leading horseman, E. P. Taylor, and sent to Taylor's

Windfields Farm Windfields Farm was a six square kilometre (1,500 acre) Thoroughbred horse breeding farm that was founded by businessman E. P. Taylor in Oshawa, Ontario, Canada. Origin The first stable and breeding operation of E. P. Taylor originated w ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...

. For new trainer Jim Bentley, Snow Knight made three starts at

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most pop ...

Woodbine Racetrack Woodbine Racetrack is a race track for Thoroughbred horse racing in the Etobicoke area of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Owned by Woodbine Entertainment Group, Woodbine Racetrack manages and hosts Canada's most famous race, the King's Plate. The track ...

but performed poorly. For the 1975 racing season, Snow Knight was sent to race in the United States, where MacKenzie Miller was entrusted with his race conditioning. Miller, known for his patience, spent months working with the high-strung colt. His diligence paid off when Snow Knight won the important

Manhattan Handicap The Manhattan Handicap is an American Thoroughbred horse race raced annually at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. It is named for Manhattan, the principal borough of the City of New York. Currently offering a purse of $1,000,000, the Grade I Manha ...

and

Man o' War Stakes The Man o' War Stakes is a Grade I American thoroughbred horse race for horses aged four-years-old and older. It is run over a distance of one and three-eighth miles on turf and is scheduled annually for early May at Belmont Park in Elmont, Ne ...

. Sent back to Woodbine Racetrack for the prestigious Canadian International Championship, he defeated an international field on the turf.

Honours and awards

On 23 January 1977, Snow Knight was elected to the

Aiken Thoroughbred Racing Hall of Fame Aiken may refer to: Places * Aiken, Illinois * Aiken County, South Carolina * Aiken, South Carolina, Aiken County's county seat * The University of South Carolina Aiken * Aiken, Texas (disambiguation) ** Aiken, Bell County, Texas **Aiken, Floyd ...

. He was voted American Champion Male Turf Horse in the Eclipse Awards for 1975. Retired to stud duty at Windfields Farm, in 1986 Snow Knight was sent to stand in Australia and Died on 15 September 1992. Although he met with limited success as a sire, Snow Knight did sire the outstanding racemare

Awaasif Awaasif (27 April 1979 – May 2004) was a Canadian-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse and broodmare. After winning once as a two-year-old in 1981, she emerged as a top-class middle-distance runner in the following season, when she ...

who won the Yorkshire Oaks and the Gran Premio del Jockey Club and finished third in the

1982 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe The 1982 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe was a horse race held at Longchamp on Sunday 3 October 1982. It was the 61st running of the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe. The winner was Akiyda, a three-year-old filly trained in France by François Mathet. The ...

Pedigree

References

* Reeves, Richard Stone, Bowen, Edward L. ''Belmont Park: A Century of Champions'' (Snow Knight section) (2005) Eclipse Press {{ISBN, 978-1-58150-122-3 1971 racehorse births 1992 racehorse deaths Racehorses bred in the United Kingdom Racehorses trained in the United Kingdom Eclipse Award winners Thoroughbred family 6-e Racehorses trained in Canada Racehorses trained in the United States Epsom Derby winners