Sire Silver Buck Dam Bonnie's Poker Country USA Owner Robert B. Lewis Earnings 6.944 million USD Color Gray | Grandsire Buckpasser Damsire Poker Species Equus caballus Trainer Bob Baffert Sex Stallion | |
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Foaled (1994-02-22) February 22, 1994 (age 23) | ||
1997 kentucky derby silver charm
Silver Charm (foaled February 22, 1994) is an American Champion Thoroughbred race horse. Trained by Bob Baffert and ridden by Gary Stevens, he is best known for winning the 1997 Kentucky Derby and the Preakness Stakes in the Triple Crown. He also won the Dubai World Cup (of which he is the oldest surviving winner), and stood at stud in both America and Japan.
Contents
- 1997 kentucky derby silver charm
- Old friends silver charm
- Background and early career
- Later racing and stud career
- Retirement
- References
Old friends silver charm
Background and early career
Silver Charm was foaled in Florida on February 22, 1994 out of the mare Bonnie's Poker and sired by Silver Buck, who was a son of Buckpasser. He was a gray colt with no white markings and was bred by Mary Lou Wootton. As a two-year-old Silver Charm was purchased by trainer Bob Baffert for $85,000, and then resold to Beverly and Robert Lewis, who kept him in training with Baffert. Silver Charm's first win was as a two-year-old, in the Del Mar Futurity. Silver Charm entered the 1997 Kentucky Derby with Gary Stevens as his jockey. Silver Charm drew the sixth post position out of a field of 13, and broke well at the starting gate. He came out between other horses going into the backstretch and took the lead with less than a furlong to go. He won the Derby, finishing a head in front of Captain Bodgit. It was Baffert's second time entering the Kentucky Derby or any American classic race; his horse Cavonnier had come in second the year before. Silver Charm won the Preakness Stakes in the same manner, pulling ahead of Captain Bodgit and Free House just before the wire.
Silver Charm lost the third jewel of the Triple Crown by placing second in the Belmont Stakes to Touch Gold; he lost by three quarters of a length. He was the winner of the 1997 Eclipse Award for Outstanding Three-Year-Old Male Horse.
Later racing and stud career
At age 4, Silver Charm won the 1998 Dubai World Cup, and placed second in the Breeders' Cup Classic. Following the end of his race career at age 5, he stood at Three Chimneys Farm in Kentucky. In 2004 he was purchased by the Japanese Breeders Association, and was sent to stud in Japan. He stood at the Shizunai Stallion Station in December 2004. In 2008, he stood at the Shichinohe Stallion Station and in 2009, at the Iburi Stallion Station.
In the Blood-Horse magazine List of the Top 100 Racehorses of the 20th Century, Silver Charm was ranked #63.
In 2007, Silver Charm was inducted into the United States Racing Hall of Fame.
Retirement
Silver Charm went to Japan to the Shizunai Stallion Station in 2004, with a so-called "buy-back clause" included in his sales contract. Since the slaughterhouse death of Kentucky Derby winner Ferdinand, the New York Owners and Breeder's Association has begun asking for a small voluntary per-race charge called the "Ferdinand Fee." These monies are intended for the Bluegrass Charities and the Thoroughbred Charities of America to help fund racehorse rescue and retirement groups and keep horses from slaughter when their breeding or racing careers are over. This has led racehorse owners to include buy-back clauses within their stallion contracts.
On October 29, 2014, it was announced jointly by Three Chimneys Farm and Old Friends Farm that Silver Charm would return from Japan and be retired permanently at Old Friends Equine, a horse retirement facility, in Georgetown, Kentucky. Beverly Lewis and her son Steve paid to bring Silver Charm back to Kentucky, where he remains at Old Friends and can be visited by the public.