It is one of the iconic events in the world of sports, ranking up there with the Super Bowl, the Indian-apolis 500, the Masters, the Rose Bowl and the World Series.

But it is the only one of the world’s best-known sporting events contested by a bunch of 3-year-olds.

Late Saturday afternoon they will stage the 138th renewal of the Kentucky Derby, referred to as the greatest two minutes in sports.

A field of 21 of the best 3-year-old thoroughbreds in horsedom will go a mile and a quarter over the dirt at historic Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky., vying for the coveted garland of roses and the first leg of racing’s Triple Crown.

A crowd of close to 165,000 will crowd the grounds to watch the event live, while 14.5 million more will view the race on television. And for a few shining moments, thoroughbred racing will take center stage in the sports world.

For two weeks thereafter, until the May 19 running of the Preakness Stakes, there will be talk of a possible Triple Crown, a feat last achieved in 1978 by Affirmed.

Then if the Derby winner also takes the Preakness, the excitement will build until the Belmont Stakes June 9.

But, if the Derby winner falters in the Preakness, horse racing will drop off the radar of most American sports fans, until early next May.

Therein lies horse racing’s dilemma. The sport’s popularity has slumped in recent years, as has attendance and betting handle. Many tracks around the country, including Oklahoma City’s Remington Park, have resorted to putting in casinos to try and offset the slump in live horse racing.

Of course, lists of “most popular” anything are a dime  a dozen on the Internet, but a couple of websites’ lists of the most popular sports in America don’t even list horse racing among the top 20. Meanwhile they do list cricket, a sport incomprehensible to anyone who didn’t grow up playing and watching it.

The lords of horse racing, then, only can hope the winner of this year’s Kentucky Derby goes on to challenge for the Triple Crown, thus keeping the sport near the front of sports sections for the next month.

Arkansas Derby winner Bodemeister, Wood Memorial champ Gemologist, Blue Grass Stakes king Dullahan are favored in Saturday’s race, along with Hansen, Union Rags and Creative Cause.

The Derby is known as much for its pageantry and tradition as for its racing. Men in seersucker and women in elaborate hats will gather to sip mint juleps and sing “My Old Kentucky Home,” with tears in their eyes, even if they grew up in the Bronx.

The sport has drawn criticism from animal rights groups over the number of injuries and deaths among horses. A recent New York Times investigation found an average of 24 horses die each week at race tracks across the U.S.

Racing is undoubtedly risky for both horses and jockeys alike. The sport involves 120-pound men and women guiding 1,200-pound animals through a maelstrom of flying dirt and flashing hooves.

But it also is a combination of carefully bred and superbly trained animals under the guidance of experienced and courageous jockeys, all making for a couple of minutes of pure excitement.

Get near a TV late Saturday afternoon and join in the fun. With luck, we’ll be talking about a possible Triple Crown in early June. Horse racing’s powers that be certainly hope so.



Mullin is senior writer of the News & Eagle. Email him at jmullin@enidnews.com.