[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 58 (Thursday, May 5, 2005)]
[House]
[Pages H3029-H3030]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
RECOGNIZING AND CELEBRATING LIFE AND ACCOMPLISHMENTS OF JIMMY ``WINK''
WINKFIELD AND OTHER AFRICAN AMERICAN JOCKEYS AND TRAINERS
Mr. DUNCAN. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee
on Government Reform be discharged from further consideration of the
resolution (H. Res. 231) recognizing and celebrating the life and
accomplishments of the great African American jockey Jimmy ``Wink''
Winkfield and the significant contributions and excellence of other
African American jockeys and trainers in the sport of horse racing and
the history of the Kentucky Derby, and ask for its immediate
consideration in the House.
=========================== NOTE ===========================
May 5, 2005--On page H3029 the following appeared: Kentucky
Derby, and ask for its immediate consideration in the House. The
SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there.
The online version should be corrected to read as: Kentucky
Derby, and ask for its immediate consideration in the House. The
Clerk read the title of the resolution.
========================= END NOTE =========================
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Tennessee?
[[Page H3030]]
There was no objection.
The Clerk read the resolution as follows:
H. Res. 231
Whereas Jimmy ``Wink'' Winkfield was born on April 12th,
1882 in Chilesburg, Kentucky, the youngest of 17 in a family
of sharecroppers;
Whereas Wink was born in an era when African American
jockeys dominated the sport of horse racing, to the extent
that African American riders won 15 of the first 28 Kentucky
Derbies and in the first Kentucky Derby in 1875, 13 of the 15
jockeys were African American;
Whereas the African American jockey Oliver Lewis won the
first Derby by two lengths, and the African American jockey
Alonzo ``Lonnie'' Clayton, at age 15, is the youngest rider
ever to win the Derby;
Whereas Wink worked by shining shoes, moved up as a stable
hand, then as an exercise rider, and rode his first race at
the age of 16;
Whereas at the age of 22, Wink won back-to-back Kentucky
Derbies in 1901 (on His Eminence) and 1902 (on Alan-A-Dale),
and placed second in 1903 (on Early);
Whereas Wink is one of only 4 jockeys ever to accomplish
this back-to-back feat, and he was the last African American
jockey to win the Kentucky Derby;
Whereas during his career Wink was known as king of the
Chicago race tracks;
Whereas unfortunately, segregation eventually forced
African American jockeys off the race track and often into
exile;
Whereas Wink left the United States by buying a steamer
ticket to Europe and settled down in Czarist Russia, where he
became a wealthy and dominant athlete in Russia's national
sport;
Whereas Wink went on to win the Russian national riding
title an unheard of 3 times, won the Moscow Derby twice, the
Russian Derby three times, the Grand Prix de Baden (in
Germany), the Poland Derby twice, and the Grand Prix de la
Republique (in France);
Whereas the Bolshevik Communist Revolution in 1917 forced
Wink to flee Russia, and he led 200 jockeys, trainers, and
owners over treacherous mountain terrain into Poland;
Whereas Wink eventually settled down in France and retired
in 1930 after accumulating 2,600 racing victories in 10
countries, and turned to raising and training horses on his
farm outside of Paris;
Whereas in 1940, when the Nazis invaded France and
commandeered his stables for their own horses, Wink defended
himself and his farm with a pitchfork, only to eventually
flee Nazi-occupied territory;
Whereas after decades of exile, Wink returned to the United
States one last time in 1961, 60 years after winning his
first Kentucky Derby, when he was invited to a pre-Kentucky
Derby banquet at the historic Brown Hotel in Louisville as a
2-time winner of the Derby;
Whereas Wink and his daughter Lillian were denied entrance
through the front door, but after a long delay were
eventually admitted, and spent most of the evening with a
white jockey named Roscoe Goose, an ex-competitor from their
own Kentucky Derby days 60 years earlier, who sat with Wink
for the evening and for the Derby the following afternoon;
Whereas Wink returned to his home in Paris, where he died
in 1974 at the age of 94 still homesick for the Kentucky
bluegrass of his boyhood, his death virtually unnoticed in
the United States; and
Whereas in 2003, Wink was admitted to the National Racing
Hall of Fame and joined two other African American Hall of
Fame jockeys, 3-time Kentucky Derby winner Isaac Murphy and
2-time winner Willie Simms: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
(1) celebrates the remarkable life and accomplishments of
one of the truly great American athletes, Jimmy ``Wink''
Winkfield, who continuously overcame racism and other
significant obstacles during his lifetime; and
(2) recognizes and celebrates the significant contributions
and excellence of African American jockeys and trainers in
the sport of horse racing and in the history of the Kentucky
Derby.
Mr. DUNCAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of House Resolution 231
that honors the Kentucky Derby and particularly the success that
African-American jockeys have enjoyed during the race's history. I am
pleased that the House is considering this resolution before the 131st
Run for the Roses at Churchill Downs on Saturday.
The resolution reminds us that African-American jockeys have greatly
influenced the history of the Kentucky Derby. Thirteen of the fifteen
riders in the first derby in 1875 were African-American. African-
American horsemen won 15 of the first 28 derbies.
Jimmy ``Wink'' Winkfield, whom the resolution recognizes
specifically, remains the last African-American jockey to win the
Kentucky Derby. He is one of only four jockeys in Kentucky Derby
history to win back-to-back races. He was victorious riding His
Eminence in 1901 and Alan-A-Dale in 1902. He also came in second the
following year when he entered the race as the favorite on Early in
1903.
Mr. Speaker, on a Saturday in May each year, the Kentucky Derby
provides us with many outstanding moments, many of which go down in
sports history. Champion horses such as Secretariat, Seattle Slew,
Alysheba, and last year, Smarty Jones, have captivated the Nation
during the race that is known as the ``greatest two minutes in
sports.'' We know this year's derby will be a spectacular show as well.
Again Mr. Speaker, I am pleased the House is considering this timely
resolution that honors the significant contributions and excellence of
African-American jockeys. The gentleman from Illinois, Congressman
Bobby Rush, deserves the commendation of all Members for his efforts on
House Resolution 231.
I also recognize the resolution's lead cosponsor, my distinguished
colleague from Kentucky, Congressman Ed Whitfield, to whom I know the
adoption of the resolution means a great deal. I urge all Members to
agree to the resolution.
Mr. WHITFIELD. Mr. Speaker, as the world's attention turns to the
131st running of the Kentucky Derby, frequently called the most
exciting two minutes in sports, I would like to turn the House's
attention to Jimmy ``Wink'' Winkfield, who is a Kentucky Derby legend.
Jimmy Winkfield overcame adversity throughout his life to become one of
the greatest jockeys of all time. Not only did Wink win the Kentucky
Derby back-to-back in 1901 and 1902, but he is the last African-
American jockey to win the derby. For his accomplishments, Wink was
inducted into the National Horse Racing Hall of Fame in 2004.
Wink was born in Chilesburg, KY, and won his derbies on Kentucky
horses. In 1902, His Eminence carried Wink to victory in the 27th
running of the Kentucky Derby. His Eminence was bred in Kentucky by
O.H. Chenault. In the 28th Run for the Roses, Wink was carried to
victory riding Alan-a-Dale, a beautiful horse that was also Kentucky
bred by T.C. McDowell.
Jimmy ``Wink'' Winkfield was truly one of the great jockeys of all
time and achieved great success despite discrimination and numerous
setbacks.
The resolution was agreed to.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
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