The Sword Dancer Stakes is an American race for

thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a list of horse breeds, horse breed developed for Thoroughbred racing, horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thorough ...

horses The horse (''Equus ferus caballus'') is a domesticated, one-toed, hoofed mammal. It belongs to the taxonomic family Equidae and is one of two extant subspecies of ''Equus ferus''. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 milli ...

, aged three and up, run annually in mid August 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 ...

Saratoga Springs, New York Saratoga Springs is a Administrative divisions of New York#City, city in Saratoga County, New York, United States. The population was 28,491 at the United States Census 2020, 2020 census. The name reflects the presence of mineral springs in the ...

. A prep for the

Breeders' Cup Turf The Breeders' Cup Turf is a Weight for Age Thoroughbred horse race on turf for three-year-olds and up. It is held annually at a different racetrack in the United States or Canada as part of the Breeders' Cup World Championships. The race's current ...

, it is set at a distance of one and one-half miles (12

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

turf Sod is the upper layer of turf that is harvested for transplanting. Turf consists of a variable thickness of a soil medium that supports a community of turfgrasses. In British and Australian English, sod is more commonly known as ''turf'', ...

. A

Grade I 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, H ...

event, the race currently offers a purse of $1,000,000. The Sword Dancer is named for the best three-year-old colt or gelding of 1959, best three-year-old, best handicap horse, and the

American Horse of the Year The American Award for Horse of the Year, or simply Horse of the Year, one of the Eclipse Awards, is the highest honor given in American thoroughbred horse racing. Because Thoroughbred horse racing in the United States has no governing body to san ...

Sword Dancer Sword Dancer (April 24, 1956 – November 16, 1984) was an American National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame, Hall of Fame Eclipse Award, Champion Thoroughbred horse racing, racehorse. He was the leading American colt of his generation an ...

was elected to the United States Racing Hall of Fame in

in 1977. The event was inaugurated at

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 ...

in 1975 as a six furlong

sprint Sprint may refer to: Aerospace * Spring WS202 Sprint, a Canadian aircraft design *Sprint (missile), an anti-ballistic missile Automobiles *Alfa Romeo Sprint, automobile produced by Alfa Romeo between 1976 and 1989 *Chevrolet Sprint, a rebadged v ...

on dirt for three-year-old horses. Beginning in 1977, it was hosted by

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 ...

then in 1992 was moved to the Saratoga Race Course. Since inception, the Sword Dancer has been contested at various distances: * 6 furlongs : 1975–1976 (on dirt) * 8.5 furlongs ( miles) : 1977–1979 * 12 furlongs ( miles) : 1980–present (on turf) The race was run as an Invitational Handicap from 1994 to 2014. In 2000, nine-year-old John's Call became the oldest horse to win this race.

Records

Speed record: (at current distance of miles) * 2:23.20 – Awad (1997) Most wins: * 2 – Majesty's Prince (1983, 1984) * 2 – El Senor (1989, 1990) * 2 – With Anticipation (2001, 2002) * 2 – Grand Couturier (2007, 2008) * 2 – Telling (2009, 2010) * 2 –

Flintshire Flintshire () is a county in the north-east of Wales. It borders the Irish Sea to the north, the Dee Estuary to the north-east, the English county of Cheshire to the east, Wrexham County Borough to the south, and Denbighshire to the west. ...

(2015, 2016) * 2 – Gufo (2021, 2022) Most wins by an owner: * 2 – John DeWitt Marsh (1983, 1984) * 2 –

Augustin Stable George W. Strawbridge Jr. (born October 10, 1937) is an American educator, historian, investor, sportsman and philanthropist. Biography Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, he was the son of Margaret ("Peggy") Dorrance and the stockbroker George ...

(2001, 2002) * 2 – Marc Keller (2007, 2008) * 2 – Alex & JoAnn Lieblong (2009, 2010) * 2 –

Juddmonte Farms Juddmonte Farms is a horse breeding farm, owned until his death on 12 January 2021 by Prince Khalid bin Abdullah of Saudi Arabia. National Thoroughbred Racing Association"Juddmonte Farms, Inc.", profile. Retrieved October 16, 2007. Overview J ...

(2015, 2016) * 2 – Otter Bend Stables (2021, 2022) 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 ...

: * 4 –

Pat Day Patrick Alan "Pat" Day (born October 13, 1953, in Brush, Colorado) is a retired American jockey. He is a four-time winner of the Eclipse Award for Outstanding Jockey and was inducted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 1991 an ...

(1987, 1997, 2001, 2002) Most wins by a trainer: * 5 –

Christophe Clement Christophe Clement (November 1, 1965 – May 25, 2025) was an American Thoroughbred horse trainer, who won the 2014 Belmont Stakes with Tonalist. Racing background Clement initially acquired his training skills from his father, Miguel, a lead ...

(1999, 2011, 2021, 2022, 2024)

Winners of the Sword Dancer since 1975

* In 1987, Theatrical was awarded first place following the disqualification of Dance of Life.

References

{{Reflist
The 2008 Sword Dancer Invitational Handicap at the NTRA
Graded stakes races in the United States Horse races in New York (state) Open middle distance horse races Grade 1 turf stakes races in the United States Horse races established in 1975 Saratoga Race Course 1975 establishments in New York City