Canada's Sovereign Award Finalists Announced

I'm a little late with this post, but last week the Jockey Club of Canada announced the finalists for the 2010 Sovereign Awards. The 36th annual Sovereign Awards Ceremony will take place on Friday, April 1, 2011 at Woodbine Racetrack, on the eve of the first day of the 2011 Woodbine meet. Female horses Biofuel and Hooh Why both lead the way with two nominations each and both could win two awards. Neither horse is competing against each other in the categories in which they are nominated.

There are some great names on the list below and a number of the awards could go to any of the finalists. Here's the list of finalists for 2010, listed in alphabetical order:

Champion Two-Year-Old Filly: Delightful Mary, Roxy Gap, Wyomia

Champion Two-Year-Old Male: Blue Laser, Madman Diaries, Rockin Heat

Champion Three-Year-Old Filly: Biofuel, Free Fee Lady, Roan Inish

Champion Three-Year-Old Male: Big Red Mike, Hotep, No Hesitation

Champion Older Female: Hooh Why, Impossible Time, Simply Splendid

Champion Older Male: Sand Cove, Southdale, Stunning Stag

Champion Turf Female: Mekong Melody (IRE), Miss Keller (IRE), Perfect Shirl

Champion Turf Male: Grand Adventure, Rahy's Attorney, Windward Islands

Champion Female Sprinter: Hooh Why, Indian Apple Is, Sugar Again

Champion Male Sprinter: Essence Hit Man, Hollywood Hit, Smokey Fire

Outstanding Broodmare: Destroy, Enchanted Spell, Eye of the Sphynx

Outstanding Breeder: Adena Springs, Eugene Melnyk, Sam-Son Farm

Outstanding Owner: Bear Stables Ltd., Melnyk Racing Stables Inc., Sam-Son Farms

Outstanding Trainer: Roger Attfield, Reade Baker, Mark Casse

Outstanding Apprentice Jockey: Brian Cheyne, Omar Moreno, Ryan Pacheco

Outstanding Jockey: Eurico Rosa Da Silva, Patrick Husbands, Chantal Sutherland

There are also four media awards categories. Blogger Keith McCalmont, who writes over at tripledeadheat.ca and is the News Editor for Canadian Thoroughbred Magazine, was nominated for his second Sovereign Award for a piece he did in Down The Stretch called Julia Brino: I'm coming back to ride. Here are each of the finalists for the media award categories:

Outstanding Newspaper Story

Perry Lefko, Memories of the King Claiming, Down The Stretch Newspaper, December 17, 2010
Jennifer Morrison, Da Silva will have crowd on his side at Prince of Wales, Toronto Star, July 23, 2010
Beverley Smith, Silky Smooth, Not Without the Colour Man, The Globe and Mail, August 17, 2010

Outstanding Feature Story

Perry Lefko, Horse Hugs, Down The Stretch Newspaper, December 17, 2010
Keith McCalmont, Julia Brino: I'm coming back to ride, Down The Stretch Newspaper, January 2010
Jennifer Morrison, Mission Accomplished, The Blood Horse, January 6, 2010

Outstanding Photograph

Terence Dulay, Hang on Big Red Mike, Canadian Thoroughbred, August/September 2010
Tod Marks, Miss Keller and her Bunny, Canadian Thoroughbred, December 2010
Cindy Pierson Dulay, Catching Seeking The Title, Canadian Thoroughbred, August/September 2010

Outstanding Film/Video/Broadcast

CBC Television Network Sports, 2010 Queen's Plate, CBC Sports, July 4, 2010
ESPN Inc., 2010 Breeders' Cup Challenge Series, ESPN2, October 16, 2010
Horse Racing Alberta and Whiteiron Productions, 81st Anniversary of the Canadian Derby, TSN, August 21, 2010

The 36th annual Sovereign Awards ceremony will take place on Friday, April 1st, 2011 at Woodbine Racetrack. The ceremony will include a welcome back reception, a buffet-style dinner, along with the presentation of the Sovereign Award Trophies to Canada's Racing Champions of 2010. If you would like to be at this special event, the Jockey Club of Canada is offering tickets for $175 each and they must be reserved in advance by contacting the Jockey Club of Canada at 416-675-7756 or e-mail: jockeyclub@bellnet.ca. Leading up to the event, I will break down each of the awards and tell you who I think will go home with the hardware.

Posted in: Woodbine