Ман о' Уар: Американдық шабыс жылқысының жұлдызы

American Thoroughbred racehorse

Man o' War (March 29, 1917 – November 1, 1947) was an American Thoroughbred racehorse who is widely regarded as one of the greatest racehorses of all time. Several sports publications, including The Blood Horse, Sports Illustrated, and the Associated Press, voted Man o' War as the best American racehorse of the 20th century. During his racing career, just after World War I, Man o' War won 20 of 21 races and $249,465 (249465.0 in 1920 is equivalent to about <calculated amount> in recent years) in purses. He was the unofficial 1920 American horse of the year and was honored with Babe Ruth as the outstanding athlete of the year by The New York Times. He was inducted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 1957. On March 29, 2017, the museum opened a special exhibit in his honor, "Man o' War at 100". In 1919, Man o' War won 9 of 10 starts, including the Hopeful Stakes and Belmont Futurity, then the most important races for two year old horses in the United States. His only loss came at Saratoga Race Course, later nicknamed the Graveyard of Champions, where he lost by a neck to a colt fittingly named Upset. Man o' War was not entered in the 1920 Kentucky Derby because his owner, Samuel Riddle, did not believe in racing at the distance of so early in a young horse's career. Instead, Man o' War made his three year old debut in the Preakness Stakes where he defeated Upset by 1 1/2 lengths. Man o' War later won the Belmont Stakes by 20 lengths while setting a world record. Throughout the summer and fall, he continued to dominate his fellow three year olds, setting multiple records while conceding large amounts of weight to his rivals. The only time he faced older horses was in the final race of his career in a match race against Sir Barton, who had won what would later be known as the American Triple Crown in 1919. Man o' War won easily by seven lengths in the first horserace to be filmed in its entirety. Riddle originally intended to race Man o' War in 1921 but decided against it because Man o' War would have been assigned record weights in the handicap format used in almost all races for older horses at the time. Instead, Man o' War was retired to stud, where he became a leading sire whose multiple champions included Triple Crown winner War Admiral. He was the grandsire of Seabiscuit and his sire line continues today through horses such as In Reality, Tiznow, Da' Tara and Tourist. Also successful as a broodmare sire, Man o' War is found in almost all modern American pedigrees.

Man o' War was a chestnut horse with a white star and stripe on his forehead. He was foaled at Nursery Stud near Lexington, Kentucky. He was bred by August Belmont Jr., whose father's accomplishments were recognized through the naming of the Belmont Stakes in 1867. Belmont Jr. was an equally notable horseman who served as the chairman of The Jockey Club from 1895 until his death in 1924. Belmont Park was named in the family's honor when it opened in 1905. Man o' War was sired by Fair Play, a multiple stakes winner who finished second in the 1908 Belmont Stakes to the undefeated Colin. Man o' War was the second foal out of Mahubah, a lightly raced mare by English Triple Crown Champion Rock Sand. Not long after the colt was foaled on March 29, 1917, Belmont Jr. joined the United States Army at age 65 to serve in France during World War I. While he was overseas, his wife named the foal "Man o' War" in honor of her husband. Originally, the Belmonts intended to race Man o' War themselves. However, in the summer of 1918 with the ongoing war effort, they decided to liquidate their racing stable. At the Saratoga yearling sale, Man o' War was sold at a final bid of $5,000 (5000.0 in 1918 is equivalent to about <calculated amount> in recent years) to Samuel D. Riddle, who brought him to his Glen Riddle Farm near Berlin, Maryland. The underbidder at the auction was Robert L. Gerry, Sr., who is reported to have said to his wife, "Forty five hundred is enough to spend for any yearling." Two years later in 1920, Riddle declined an offer of $400,000 for the horse. At maturity, Man o' War stood , with prominent withers and a high croup, but was sometimes faulted for a dipped back that grew more pronounced with age. He had virtually flawless legs and solid bone, traits he passed on to his offspring. He had a slightly Roman nose and notably high head carriage. described as the "look of eagles". His stride was measured at 28 feet and, to this day, is believed to still be the longest of all time. Developing this talent was not easy for trainer Louis Feustel due to Man o' War's occasionally wild temperament. In his early days, Man o' War would routinely dump his exercise riders, once getting free for over 15 minutes after a morning workout. "He fought like a tiger," Riddle later recalled. "He screamed with rage and fought us so hard that it took several days before he could be handled with safety." Feustel brought the colt along slowly and gradually settled him into a regular routine.

Man o' War made his debut at Belmont Park on June 6, 1919, in a maiden race over At the time, horses had to race clockwise at Belmont Park rather than counter clockwise like all the other American tracks of the day, so horses had to learn to race in both directions. This practice ended in 1922 after Man o' War retired. Man o' War won his first race by six lengths, then just three days later was entered in the Keene Memorial Stakes at a distance of on a muddy track at Belmont Park. At this point in his career, Man o' War had not yet learned how to start quickly but soon settled into fourth place. With an eighth of a mile remaining, jockey Johnny Loftus urged Man o' War to run and the horse responded by pulling away from his rivals to win by three lengths. Twelve days later, Man o' War followed up with another win in the Youthful Stakes at Jamaica Race Course. Two days after that, he swept to victory in the Hudson Stakes at Aqueduct to record his fourth win in just 18 days. Less than two weeks later, he returned to win the Tremont Stakes at Aqueduct on July 5. He was then shipped upstate for the summer meet at Saratoga Race Course where the competition would be much fiercer. He made his first appearance there in the United States Hotel Stakes on August 2. Despite getting a bad start and carrying 130 pounds, Man o' War won easily by two lengths in his first meeting with a well regarded colt named Upset. His next start was the Sanford Memorial Stakes on August 13, where he went off as the odds on favorite with Upset as the third betting choice. This race is notorious in racing history as Man o' War's only defeat, playing a part in developing Saratoga's reputation as the "Graveyard of Champions". In the early 1900s, there were no starting gates. Horses circled around and then lined up behind a piece of webbing known as the barrier and were sent away when it was raised. In the Sanford, most sources state that Man o' War was still circling with his back to the starting line when the barrier was raised (though some accounts say he was turned only slightly sideways). What is undisputed is that Man o' War had a terrible start, which The New York Times attributed to the absence of the regular starting official. The start was delayed for several minutes as other colts repeatedly broke through the barrier and the starter finally released the field when only the horses near the rail were ready. As a result, Man o' War found himself far behind the other starters. Loftus then put Man o' War in a bad position, getting boxed in by other horses then checked by tiring horses. Despite this, Man o' War came close to winning, losing by about a neck while conceding 15 pounds to Upset. The loss only enhanced Man o' War's reputation. J. L. Dempsey of The Daily Racing Form wrote, "Without attempting to detract from the merits of [Upset's] performance, Man o' War proved himself in the running unquestionably the best. It was Upset's advantage at the start, coupled with 15 pounds weight concession, a perfect ride he received from Knapp and his success in saving ground on the stretch turn that brought his triumph over Man o' War. Had the race been a sixteenth farther the finish would have been reversed." While carrying 130 pounds, Man o' War tied the stakes record of 1:12 2/5 for that had been set by Garbage while carrying only
Just 7 days later, Man o' War entered the Hopeful Stakes, whose purse of $30,000 made it one of the richest prizes in racing at the time. He faced only eight rivals, a small field at the time for such a prestigious race. Heavy rain started to fall as the field headed to the starting post and Man o' War broke through the barrier several times, delaying the race by twelve minutes. Despite this, he won with "ridiculous ease" by six lengths. Man o' War then returned to Belmont Park for the Futurity Stakes on September 14. The Futurity had a purse of $5,000 added, meaning the prize money was increased by nomination and entry fees. Because the Futurity was one of the preeminent races of the day, the added money was large enough to increase the winners share of the purse to $26,650. Man o' War briefly dueled for the lead with a well regarded sprinter named Dominique then opened up a commanding lead. Turning into the stretch, John P. Grier swept into second with an all out drive but failed to make up any ground on Man o' War, who had not been urged at any point in the race. Man o' War won by three lengths while carrying 127 pounds, 10 pounds more than John P. Grier. Journalists, horsemen and fans agreed that Man o' War had to be considered as one of the greatest American horses of his age, and compared him favorably to the unbeaten Colin. Man o' War completed his two year old campaign with nine wins from ten starts and earnings of $82,275. He was named the American Champion Two Year Old Colt of 1919. He was rated at 136 pounds by handicapper C. C. Ridley of the Daily Racing Form, 16 pounds ahead of the second ranked colt, Blazes. Riddle decided early on to restrict Man o' War to races within his own age division, in large part because the most valuable races in the country were restricted to three year olds. He decided not to enter Man o' War in the Kentucky Derby because it was run only a few days before his preferred target, the Preakness Stakes, which was held close to the Riddle farm where Man o' War had spent the winter. Instead, Man o' War made his three year old debut on May 18 in the Preakness Stakes, then run at a distance of 1 1/8 miles. Despite the long layoff and never having raced beyond , he went off as the 4 5 favorite in a field of nine horses that included his old rival Upset, who had finished second in the Derby. Man o' War broke alertly and took the lead within the first 10 yards, then established a two length lead down the backstretch while under restraint. As they rounded the final turn, Upset started to close ground so Kummer loosened his grip. Man o' War responded by again pulling away, completing the opening mile in what would have been a new Pimlico track record of 1:383/5. Eased in the final furlong, Man o' War won by 1 1/2 lengths over Upset in a final time of 1:513/5. The horse was then returned to his home base at Belmont Park where a crowd of 25,000 turned out to watch him in the Withers Stakes on May 29. He was sent off at "generous" odds of 1–7 against only two rivals: Wildair, winner of the Metropolitan Handicap who was at odds of 6–1, and the overmatched David Harum at 30–1. Man o' War again seized the early lead, completing the first quarter mile in :23 3/5 while tugging at the bit. When Wildair tried to close ground around the turn, Kummer briefly released his hold and Man o' War opened up his lead again. Eased in the final sixteenth of a mile, Man o' War still won by two lengths while setting an American race record of 1:354/5 for the mile. efn|Man o' War's time of 1:35 4/5 in the Withers broke the American race record for a mile by 2/5 second. However, in a time trial in 1918, Roamer completed a mile in 1:34 4/5. This time stood as the American record until 1961 when Wise Ship ran the distance in 2:14 flat on a turf course. It still stood as the American dirt record until 1991. His connections had a brief scare when Man o' War exhibited signs of lameness after a workout on August 17, but he quickly recovered. On August 21, he entered the Travers Stakes where he faced his two strongest rivals: Upset for the fifth and last time, and John P. Grier for the third time. A record crowd overflowed the grandstand and stretched all the way down the rail and track apron. As a result, Saratoga management opened up the infield and 5,000 people moved across the track to line the inner rail. When his only rival scratched from the race, it nearly became a walkover until Mrs. Riddle's niece, Sarah Jeffords, entered Hoodwink. To compensate for the lack of competition, Riddle announced that Man o' War would be allowed to show his speed. Man o' War was reunited with regular jockey Kummer, after being ridden by Sande and Schuttinger while Kummer recovered from an injury. Kummer neither restrained the horse nor urged him on at any point in the race. Running as he pleased, Man o' War won by slightly more than a quarter mile – the official margin was 100 lengths – while setting a new world record of 2:40 4/5 for a mile and five eighths. This broke the existing world record set in England by 1 3/5 seconds and lowered the American record by over four seconds. This world record stood until 1956, when it was broken by Man o' War's great grandson Swaps. The New York Times commented, "at Belmont Park yesterday [Man o' War] gave what was undoubtedly the greatest exhibition of speed over a considerable distance of ground ever witnessed anywhere." Man o' War next entered the Potomac Handicap at Havre de Grace Racetrack in Maryland on September 18. Man o' War was assigned 138 pounds, conceding from 24 to 34 pounds to his rivals, which included Kentucky Derby winner Paul Jones. Man o' War faced an early challenge from Blazes then turned back a late run by Wildair to win by 1 1/2 lengths while breaking the track record by 1/5 seconds. Although Man o' War was not seriously challenged, the high weight and a poorly maintained racing surface took a toll: Man o' War came out of the race with a swollen tendon on his right foreleg. The final start of Man o' War's career came in Windsor, Ontario, Canada, in the Kenilworth Park Gold Cup on October 12. The event was so highly anticipated that it became the first horserace to be filmed in its entirety, with the resulting footage later shown in movie theaters across the country. The race was originally intended to be a face off between the three great horses of the time: Man o' War, Sir Barton and Exterminator. However, the owners of Sir Barton and Man o' War agreed to a distance of 1 1/4 miles, which was too short for Exterminator to run his best, and agreed to a weight for age format, under which the older Exterminator would concede weight to Man o' War. Therefore, Exterminator was not entered, and in fact, raced that same day on a different track. Now essentially a match race, the advantage shifted to Man o' War, whose front running style allowed him to dictate the pace. Man o' War was almost flat footed at the break but quickly gathered speed to draw clear of Sir Barton in the first furlong. Kummer then slowed the pace while maintaining a two length lead down the backstretch. On the final turn, Man o' War put in a brief spurt and quickly opened the lead to five lengths. Kummer again pulled him in and Man o' War maintained a steady pace to the wire to win by seven lengths in a "ridiculously easy" fashion. Although the time of 2:03 was well off the American record shared by Man o' War and Sir Barton, it still broke the track record by over six seconds. Man o' War's share of the purse made him the highest earning horse in American history. There were no formal awards for American Horse of the Year at the time but Man o' War was informally acknowledged as such in a retroactive poll of turf writers. In its summary of the sporting year, The New York Times stated, "A superman (Babe Ruth) and a superhorse – these were sport's greatest contributions to the history of the year about to close. Some might rate the superhorse, Man o' War, as the outstanding figure of the two, for he has passed on from the field of competition and has left a story of achievement which may never be surpassed." Over his two year career, Man o' War won 20 of 21 races, setting three world records, two American records, and three track records.

At the time, there were few weight for age races in the United States. The majority of races were run under handicap conditions, with better horses being assigned higher weights in an attempt to equalize the chances of the other horses in the field. As one writer put it, "the one certain thing about racing is that weight will eventually stop the greatest of racers and bring them down to equal terms with horses of much less quality." As a two year old, Man o' War carried in six races; few racehorses have ever carried that much at any age. As a three year old, he carried as much as in races, conceding as much as to other horses. Had he raced at age four, the handicappers would have started him at 140 pounds, increasing the amount each time he won until such time as Man o' War either lost or was injured. For this reason, Riddle decided to retire him at the end of his three year old campaign.