Features
Famous Jewish Horse Jockeys Throughout History
When you think of horse racing, what comes to mind? The thunderous applause of the crowd, the heart-pounding thrill of the race, or perhaps the elegant hats and mint juleps of the Kentucky Derby?
Still, if I tell you to picture famous Jewish horse jockeys, does your mind draw a blank? Maybe there are some names among the contenders in the 2024 Kentucky Derby betting?
Well, prepare to be enlightened, entertained, and possibly a bit surprised as we dive into the fascinating world of Jewish horse jockeys throughout history.
Jewish Participation in Horse Racing
Contrary to what stereotypes might suggest – no, not all Jewish professionals are doctors, lawyers, or tech moguls – a number of Jewish athletes have made significant marks in the world of horse racing.
This might come as a shock to some, given the historical and cultural barriers that have often sidelined Jewish participation in various sports. But just like breaking into Hollywood or winning Nobel Prizes, Jewish jockeys have defied odds, gravity, and sometimes, even logic.
The Jewish influence in horse racing is actually quite big. If we look back on some of the most successful horse racing stories, we can see traces of Jewish people involved in the process. Just take American Pharoah for example. The horse that won the Triple Crown (first time since 1978) and the Breeders Cup in the same year.
The owner of American Pharoah was Ahmed Zayat; an Orthodox Jew from Egypt has become one of the most powerful figures in horse racing.
The Beginnings of Jewish Presence in Horse Racing
Let us start with the early days by going back to the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, when horse racing was one of the only activities with considerable popularity.
Jewish jockeys, like as Tod Sloan, began to emerge from the crowd. Sloan was more than simply a jockey; he was a celebrity, renowned for his “monkey crouch” riding style, which transformed horse racing. But why is Sloan not a household name like other sports legends?
Perhaps it is due to the specialized character of horse racing or to the overshadowing of successes in other industries. Whatever the cause, Sloan and his contemporaries paved the way for what was to follow.
Jewish Influence on the Kentucky Derby
The Kentucky Derby is one of the biggest sporting events in the world that dates back 150 years.
Most visitors are astonished to learn that the Jewish community has had a substantial impact on the event’s history and culture.
From horse owners to riders to industry executives, Jews have left their imprint on horse racing.
One of the most well-known is the Wertheimer family, who owned the famous horse Exterminator, who won the race in 1918. The Wertheimers were well-known for their successful thoroughbred breeding and racing enterprise, which they had run for many years.
But we also have the Phipps family and the Zayat family, who also left a big mark on the Kentucky Derby.
Most Popular Jewish Jockeys Over the Years
But Jewish people are not only owners of horses. In fact, we can see many Jewish jockeys that actually made a rather successful horse racing career.
William Harmatz
William Harmatz (February 9, 1931–January 27, 2011) was an American Thoroughbred horse racing jockey who won the 1959 Preakness Stakes riding Royal Orbit.
Harmatz, a Jewish jockey, received the George Woolf Memorial Jockey Award in 1960 for demonstrating high standards of personal and professional behavior on and off the racecourse. He was elected into the International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame in 1999.
Isaac Murphy
Here we have one of the most successful Jockeys, at least when it comes to win rate.
Isaac Murphy won with more than a third of his rides each year. According to his own assessment, Murphy won 44% of his races. Only 34.5% can be validated in era-specific chart books, although it’s possible that some of his races were not included. Murphy set a level that no other jockey has surpassed.
He won three Kentucky Derbys, five Latonia Derbys, and four of the first five runnings of the American Derby, which was formerly the richest 3-year-old event in America.
Murphy was recognized not just for his horseback riding abilities, but also for his honesty and commitment. He once refused to allow champion Falsetto to lose the 1879 Kenner Stakes, despite bribes from gamblers.
Walter Blum
Speaking of successful jockeys, we cannot miss Walter Blum, a Hall of Famer who had an incredible career in horse racing spanning across almost two decades. When he retired in 1975, only four jockeys actually managed to have more wins than Blum.
Despite being blind in his right eye since the age of two, when he fell from a toy horse, in 1953 he began a career as a jockey, riding his first winner on July 29 at Saratoga Race Course. Blum spent the majority of his 22-year career riding on East Coast tracks from New England to Florida, and he is one of only four riders to have won six races on a single program at Monmouth Park.
However, in the 1960s, he rode seasonally at California races, winning the 1966 Santa Anita Derby, and he also dominated Chicago’s summer racing circuit, particularly at Arlington Park.
Honorable Mentions
We’ve covered some of the most successful Jewish jockeys, but they are not the only ones in the sport. Over the year’s we’ve seen many other Jewish jockeys that might not have the same success, but definitely left a mark on the sport.
Sol Levitch competed in the Kentucky Derby six times between 1929 and 1940, placing in the top three twice. David Erb rode in the Kentucky Derby three times in the 1920s, with his best finish of third place in 1927. Herb Fisher rode in the Kentucky Derby twice during the 1940s, finishing seventh in 1941 and ninth in 1947.
Features
5 Ways to Carve Out Gym Time in Your Life
From rewriting your brain and sticking to a disciplined workout regime, find the top 5 ways to carve out adequate gym time in your daily routine.
A Brief Introduction
It can be a hassle to find the time to work out if you are busy with everyday responsibilities. By incorporating a few practical strategies into your daily life, you can start being consistent with your gym routine.
- Remember Your Motivation to Prioritize
If you’re trying to be consistent, you need to know why you started out. People may have different reasons to commit their time to the gym. Be it to build muscles, lose weight, deal with stress, or improve overall health, having a clear vision of your goal will help you stick to it. With your reason to start always on your mind, you will now have a reason to keep showing up, day in and day out. This helps cut out excuses and prioritize your wellbeing.
- Reduce Your Barrier to Start
The more hurdles you keep on your way to start, the harder it will be to continue with your habit. The easy solution is to cut down on the effort it takes to get started. Pick an accessible gym over a fancier one that you would need to go out of your way to visit. By picking a gym along the route of your daily routine, you can seamlessly incorporate working out as part of your day. Be it near your workplace or your home, the location makes hitting the gym convenient.
It also helps if you plan ahead. Be it your preworkout, your protein shake, or other health supplements from flexpharma.is, make sure you are restocking before you run out. Anabolic steroids are possibly one of the most popular items that have methandrostenolone. Injectables, fat burners, and fusion steroids are some of the trending fitness products that have been creating a buzz across the world.
Keep your gym bag ready to go and lay out your workout gear ahead of time so that you are left with no excuses.
- Get a Gym Buddy for Accountability
Nothing helps drive athletes more than having a sense of community and camaraderie. People interested in weight training already know about the importance of a spotter. Having a friend, a partner, or a peer in the gym will help keep you on track to consistency. This also provides a sense of community, making it more rewarding to attend workout sessions regularly and push each other towards breaking new personal records.
- Incorporate Workouts in Your Daily Activities
It is impossible to make it to the gym every day without fail, be it due to work, family, or other responsibilities. For those days, make it a habit to not skip your workouts. There are many home workout videos and apps available that offer a range of exercise options with little to no equipment. You can start with mini-workouts like planks or squats during short breaks. It can even be as simple as going for a quick stroll for five minutes while stuck at work if you are pressed for time. The easiest way to increase your fitness and stamina is through Sermorelin, Semaglutide, and other cutting-edge peptides to start with.
- Rewire Your Brain
Science talks about neuroplasticity and the power of the positive feedback loop. Without having to learn more about cognitive sciences, you can still make use of these hacks to trick your brain into enjoying training. For every achievement, celebrate yourself. Be it a happy shout of victory on breaking a personal record or getting a new flavor of protein bar, with every celebratory action, you reinforce the positive effect of being consistent at the gym. By creating a positive experience, you make it easier for your brain to stay engaged and consistent at the gym.
Conclusion
It takes careful planning to commit to gym life. While hard work is always rewarded in the gym, in order to get to the gym day in and day out, you also need to work smart. By removing the common hurdles and being dedicated, you can make sure you reach your personal wellness goal.
Features
When will we most likely see an NFL expansion team from Canada?
It’s currently the middle of August, meaning that the biggest sporting show in North America doesn’t start for another three weeks. On September 5, the curtain will come down on the new NFL season as the reigning Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs hosts Baltimore Ravens at Arrowfield Stadium.
It’s not just Americans that love football though, the game and in particular the NFL is hugely popular north of the border here in Canada. Every week millions of Canadians tune in to cheer on their favourite teams and keep refresh their phones to find out the latest NFL standings.
What though, are the chances of Canadian NFL fans checking their phones to see how a Canadian team is doing in the standings? Read on to find out.
The History of NFL Expansion into Canada
Broadly there are two camps in Canada when it comes to NFL expansion. Those on one side of the debate claim that they don’t need an NFL team and that having one would cause harm to their own domestic competition.
On the other side of the battlefield are those who claim that the NFL is more popular in Canada than its own domestic league and that it is baffling that millions of Canadians are forced to support American teams when they could be supporting one of their own in the NFL.
Traditionally the second camp has been winning the argument, but only just. Which explains why many attempts for an NFL expansion into the country have failed, as the physical barriers to overcome have been, at times, overshadowed by the ideological ones.
From around 1975 to 2015, there have been numerous attempts to set up a franchise in Canada – particularly in Toronto – but none have taken hold. The closest that we have gotten to NFL action north of the border was when the Buffalo Bills played six regular season games at the Rogers Centre between 2008 to 2013.
(The fans might have loved the Toronto series, but it’s safe to say the Bill’s players didn’t particularly enjoy it.)
What’s Stopping Expansion?
Currently the argument for expansion is gaining momentum, but despite that there are still substantial obstacles to overcome. The key one is that there is no current suitable venue that the NFL see as being able to sustain a franchise.
In terms of supporter numbers, Toronto is the only feasible location for an NFL franchise. With a metropolitan population in excess of 6 million and an estimated football viewing audience of just under a million, it is by far and away the standout contender to host an NFL team.
Unfortunately, The Rogers Centre has since been turned into an exclusively baseball venue since being used as a temporary home for the Bills back in 2013. The next alternative in Toronto is BMO Field, the home of MLS side Toronto FC.
Whilst the 31,000 seater stadium is perfectly serviceable for MLS, its capacity puts it at below half of the average capacity of an NFL stadium (70,000).
What the Future Holds for Canadian NFL Expansion
There are three possibilities for a Canadian NFL expansion. The first is that the 18,000 seat expansion to BMO field for the 2026 FIFA World Cup satisfies the NFL. That would bring the total capacity at the stadium to just under 50,000, which would still make it the smallest stadium in the NFL but only by around 10,000 seats.
Or, that the stadium can be further expanded to bring it into line with other NFL venues and thus remove one huge obstacle to expansion. The other alternative is that work begins on a purpose built venue with the backing of local businessman and American entrepreneurs who are keen to see NFL played regularly in Canada.
Potential Timeframes
If the first two stadium possibilities are possible then we could see a Toronto based NFL team at the end of the decade. That’s a best case scenario. The most likely however is that BMO Field is deemed unsuitable for the NFL, leaving another venue to be found.
Unfortunately, 70,000 seater stadiums aren’t cheap and finding someone to finance a project of that size without the guarantee of an NFL franchise is highly unlikely. Until then, it looks like we’ll have to continue backing our own domestic league and enjoying the NFL from afar…
Features
Common Online Casino Mistakes To Avoid
Online casino games can be a brilliant way to bring excitement to life in your spare time. These games have become hugely popular in recent years, but you will find that people often make the same mistakes. These mistakes can lead to financial losses, cybercrime, and an inferior experience, so it is important to be aware of what these mistakes are so that they can be avoided. This post will outline a few of the most common mistakes people make when playing online casino games and explain how to avoid falling into the same trap. Interested? Keep reading to find out more.
Ignoring Terms & Conditions
One of the biggest mistakes players make with online casino games is ignoring the terms and conditions. You should always take the time to read through these, paying close attention to things like the conditions of bonuses and restrictions in withdrawals. This will help you avoid any nasty surprises when playing games.
Not Researching Casinos
Another common mistake people make is not researching casinos. There are endless options for online casinos, but not all are equal, and there are even many that are unlicensed. Therefore, you need to research casinos and find one that is fully licensed and has positive reviews. The best casinos will have a massive selection of games to choose from, including blackjack online. A wide selection of games means it is hard to get bored, and you can always find something to play.
Chasing Losses
One of the most dangerous mistakes people make is chasing losses. This is where players will attempt to win back the money they have lost, which often means betting larger sums. This is a dangerous tactic and a slippery slope, so it is important to be aware of it and take measures to protect against it. The best way to avoid chasing losses is to set a budget before each session – if you spend that amount, you need to be able to walk away.
Not Understanding Games
It is always important to have a strong understanding of the game that you are playing. This will boost your chances of winning and your gaming experience. Therefore, you should always read the instructions when playing a game for the first time. For strategic games like poker, there is a lot of information online that will help you get to grips with the basics and learn strategies to use.
Weak Passwords
Cybersecurity needs to be a top priority when it comes to online casino games. The top casinos will have strong cybersecurity measures in place, but you also have a role to play. It is important to use strong passwords and multi-factor authentication to prevent hackers. It is also smart to avoid having large sums held in your online account in case someone hacks your account.
These are the most common mistakes that you will want to avoid when it comes to online casino games. By avoiding these mistakes, you can improve your experience and enjoy the excitement that these games can bring.
You must be logged in to post a comment Login