Cherie Devaux made history early this month becoming the first ever female trainer to win the Kentucky Derby. This is a huge milestone for the sport and an even bigger milestone for women! Cherie’s winning horse, Golden Tempo, stormed from very last place to first place in this year’s annual Kentucky Derby.
The 44 year old Cherie Devaux became the first woman to train the winning horse in the Kentucky Derby when Golden Tempo passed favorite Renegade right near the finish and won the Triple Crown race on May 2. With Golden Tempo only having odds of 23-1. With the amazing victory many ask Devaux if she is proud of being the first woman trainer to win this historic medal. While she is very honored and excited about the win for and Golden Tempo, she has said in various ways that she is celebrating the fact that that she won the Kentucky Derby, not the fact that she is a woman. while it is a historical moment for the Kentucky Derby she stated that “I consider myself a horse trainer, and I just happen to be a female,” She is not throwing away the fact that this is a historical moment for women, but she is focused on her win as a trainer. When asked if she considered herself a trailblazer she added “It’s quite an honor to be the first female trainer to win the Kentucky Derby,”
Based in Kentucky and maintaining presence in New York, Cherie DeVaux’s stable has grown and rocketed up the horse trainer ranks. “The credit for winning the race definitely goes to Jose because he had to time that perfectly,” DeVaux said. “And he had all of the faith in the horse that he had it.” She works
with jockey Jose Ortiz who navigated Golden Te
mpo past 17 other horses in the nick of time. “I felt like I had horse,” Jose Ortiz said. “I felt like we were moving along very nice. I felt like going outside on him wasn’t going to hurt me. I think he was the horse to beat.”
DeVaux said the gravity of the situation came into focus for her days earlier when she saw a young girl on the backstretch and realized the impact she is making.”It really is an honor to be able to be that person for other women or other little girls to look up to,” DeVaux said. “You can dream big, and you can pivot. You can come from one place and make yourself a part of history.” DeVaux became just the second woman to train a horse that won a Triple Crown race. Jena Antonucci broke that barrier when her horse Arcangelo won the Belmont Stakes.
This is a huge moment for Woman in sports and especially in this realm. Cherie says she want to encourage young girls around the country to not give up and keep fighting hard for your dreams to com
e true. because with a little hard work and the courage to do something extraordinary you to0 can be the woman in the room that makes history.
