WAVE 3 - Louisville, KYTwo Past Derby Winners Could Be Slaughtered

Two Past Derby Winners Could Be Slaughtered

By Justin Wilfon

(LOUISVILLE, July 22nd, 2003, 11 a.m.) -- Two past winners of the Kentucky Derby could soon be headed to a slaughterhouse, even as a works to improve the future of Derby winners Sea Hero and Strike the Gold, hoping to keep them alive. WAVE 3's Justin Wilfon has the story.

Strike the Gold raced to a win in the 1991 Kentucky Derby, and it was a special day for his trainer Nick Zito. "Strike the Gold is a special horse," Zito said. "He's a wonderful horse to be around."

Now, 12 years later, Nick and his wife Kim, worry about what's next for their beloved horse. Strike the Gold was sold to a jockey club in Turkey where he served as a stud. But now that his stud days are over, they've been told he could go to a slaughterhouse.

And Kim said the news got worse. "They said 'we will eat them.' Like that. And that was the end of that conversation."

After that talk with a person she can't name, Kim immediately called Michael Blowen, the founder of Old Friends, a Kentucky organization devoted to providing a good home for retired stallions. "She called us and asked us if we'd investigate getting them back from Turkey," Blowen said. "And we thought that's a great idea."

Blowen will fight not only to bring back "Strike the Gold", but also Sea Hero, the 1993 Derby winner. He was also sold to a group in Turkey. "These horses don't belong in Turkey," Blowen said. "They're Kentucky Derby winners. They belong in America. They belong right here in central Kentucky. Right in the Blue Grass."

Now Blowen just needs the money to buy the horses and ship them across the ocean. And he has thought of a creative way to raise funds.

"What we're planning to do under the Old Friends is issue certificates of ownership," Blowen said. "So for $50, racing fans around the country can own a portion of a Kentucky Derby winner."

Blowen plans to use the money collected to build a farm where the horses can spend their final days in peace. Not in a slaughterhouse in Turkey.

Blowen went on to say that he thinks the horses deserve to live out their days around the "kind of beauty you have here at Hopewell Farm, the kind of setup that's here -- this is the kind of retirement they should have, and we just want to eliminate any question about what happens to these horses when they retire."

Now Blowen says he doesn't think the Derby winners would be slaughtered if they stay in Turkey, but says he can't rule it out.

If you would like to donate money to help bring the horses back to Kentucky you can call Old Friends at (859) 846-9995. Or you can visit their website www.oldfriendsequine.com.

Online Reporter: Justin Wilfon

Online Producer: Michael Dever