The True North Handicap is an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 thoroughbred horse race

Thoroughbred horse race

Thoroughbred horse racing is a worldwide sport and industry involving the racing of Thoroughbred horses. It is governed by different national bodies. There are two forms of the sport: Flat racing and National Hunt racing...

 run annually in early June at Belmont Park

Belmont Park

Belmont Park is a major thoroughbred horse-racing facility located in Elmont in the Town of Hempstead in Nassau County, New York, on Long Island adjoining New York City. It first opened on May 4, 1905...

 in Elmont, New York

Elmont, New York

Elmont is an unincorporated census-designated place located in the northwest corner of the Town of Hempstead in Nassau County, New York, along its border with the borough of Queens in New York City...

. The race is a Grade II

Graded stakes race

A graded stakes race is a term applied since 1973 by the American Graded Stakes Committee of the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association to thoroughbred horse races in the United States and Canada to describe races that derive their name from the stake, or entry fee, owners must pay...

 event, offering a purse of $200,000 and is open to three-year-olds and up willing to race six furlong

Furlong

A furlong is a measure of distance in imperial units and U.S. customary units equal to one-eighth of a mile, equivalent to 220 yards, 660 feet, 40 rods, or 10 chains. The exact value of the furlong varies slightly among English-speaking countries....

s (1,207 m) on dirt.

The True North is named for the winner of the 1945 Fall Highweight Handicap

Fall Highweight Handicap

The Fall Highweight Handicap is an American Thoroughbred horse race held annually near the end of November at Aqueduct Racetrack in Queens, New York. Currently run at a distance of 6 furlongs , it is open to horses three years of age and older. The race is a real test for speed and strength in that...

, True North.

In winning the 1987 edition of the True North Handicap, Groovy

Groovy (horse)

Groovy was an American Thoroughbred Champion sprint racehorse known for his love of jelly donuts. As at 2011, he is the last horse to break the 130 Beyer Speed Figure having accomplished that milestone in his first two starts of 1987. In the Roseben Handicap at Aqueduct Racetrack he earned a 131...

 earned a Beyer Speed Figure

Beyer Speed Figure

The Beyer Speed Figure is a system for rating the performance of Thoroughbred racehorses in North America designed in the early 1970s by Andrew Beyer, the syndicated horse racing columnist for The Washington Post...

 of 134.

Records

Speed record:

• 1:07.80 - Groovy
  Groovy (horse)
  Groovy was an American Thoroughbred Champion sprint racehorse known for his love of jelly donuts. As at 2011, he is the last horse to break the 130 Beyer Speed Figure having accomplished that milestone in his first two starts of 1987. In the Roseben Handicap at Aqueduct Racetrack he earned a 131...
  
   (1987)

Most wins:

• No horse has won this race more than once.

Most wins by a jockey

Jockey

A jockey is an athlete who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing.-Etymology:...

:

• 3 - Jean-Luc Samyn
  Jean-Luc Samyn
  Jean-Luc Samyn is a jockey in American Thoroughbred horse racing.The son of a pastry chef, Jean-Luc Samyn was one of three children. At age thirteen, he went to work for the stable of trainer John Cunnington at Chantilly, a racecourse about north of Paris city center...
  
   (1979, 1981, 1999)
• 3 - Angel Cordero, Jr. (1987, 1988, 1989)
• 3 - Robbie Davis
  Robbie Davis
  Robbie Glen Davis is a retired American Thoroughbred horse racing jockey.-Early life:Davis grew up in a single parent household forced onto welfare, something that would impact him for the rest of his life....
  
   (1996, 1997, 2000)

Most wins by a trainer

Horse trainer

In horse racing, a trainer prepares a horse for races, with responsibility for exercising it, getting it race-ready and determining which races it should enter...

:

• 3 - William I. Mott (1991, 1993, 1998)

Most wins by an owner:

• 2 - Seymour Cohn (1985, 1999)

Winners

Year	Winner	Age	Jockey	Trainer	Owner	Time
2011	Trappe Shot	4	John Velazquez	Kiaran McLaughlin Kiaran McLaughlin Kiaran P. McLaughlin is an American Thoroughbred racehorse trainer. He currently has a blog website, at http://kiaranmclaughlin.com where he updates what horses he has racing for that particular day...	Mill House	1:08.86
2010	Bribon	7	Garrett Gomez Garrett K. Gomez Garrett Keith Gomez is an American thoroughbred jockey.-Early career:Gomez learned to ride by watching his father, Louie, who was a jockey at many tracks in the Southwest United States...	Todd A. Pletcher	Derrick Smith	1:09.63
2009	Fabulous Strike	6	Ramon Dominguez Ramon A. Dominguez Ramon A. Dominguez is an Eclipse Award-winning champion jockey in American Thoroughbred horse racing....	Todd M. Beattie	Walter Downey	1:07.85
2008	Benny the Bull	5	Edgar Prado	Richard E. Dutrow, Jr.	IEAH Stables IEAH Stables IEAH Stables operates a thoroughbred horse racing stable in the United States. It is based in Garden City, New York.IEAH was formed in 2003 by Michael Iavarone, Michael Sherack and Richard Schiavo. Current IEAH employees include Hall of Fame jockey Gary Stevens as a bloodstock agent and Mike...  et al	1:09.06
2007	Will He Shine	5	Edgar Prado	Dale L. Romans Dale L. Romans Dale L. Romans is an American Thoroughbred racehorse trainer.The son of a trainer, Dale Romans is best known for training the winner of the 2011 Preakness, Shackleford....	Saviaro Pugliese & Marc Wexler	1:08.70
2006	Anew	5	Alan Garcia Alan Garcia (jockey) Alan Garcia is a thoroughbred horse racing jockey. He was Peru's leading apprentice jockey in 2003 and in that same year he began racing in the United States at the Meadowlands Racetrack where he was also the leading apprentice. His father and grandfather were both jockeys in Peru...	Steve Asmussen Steve Asmussen Steven Mark Asmussen is an American Thoroughbred racehorse trainer. Born into a horse racing family, his parents, Keith and Marilyn "Sis" Asmussen, are both trainers who operate El Primero Training Center off the Mines Road in Laredo, the seat of Webb County in south Texas...	Chrome Cowboy Racing et al.	1:08.10
2005	Woke Up Dreamin	5	Mike Smith	Bob Baffert Bob Baffert Robert A. "Bob" Baffert is an American horse owner and trainer, whose horses have won three Kentucky Derbies, five Preakness Stakes, one Belmont Stakes and two Kentucky Oaks. He graduated from the University of Arizona's with a Bachelor of Science degree. -Early career:Bob Baffert began his...	Michael E. Pegram	1:08.38
2004	Speightstown	6	John Velazquez	Todd A. Pletcher	Eugene & Laura Melnyk Eugene Melnyk Eugene Melnyk is a Ukrainian Canadian businessman who now resides in Barbados. He is the current owner, governor, and chairman of the Ottawa Senators professional ice hockey club of the National Hockey League . He also owns the Mississauga St. Michael's Majors junior-age ice hockey club...	1:08.04
2003	Shake You Down	5	Mike Luzzi Mike Luzzi Michael Jude Luzzi is an American jockey. He grew up near Delaware Park Racetrack where his grandfather, trainer Buddy Raines, had a major role in raising him and his brother John who also became a jockey...	Scott A. Lake	Robert L. Cole, Jr.	1:09.40
2002	Explicit	5	Lonnie Meche	Ian Jory	Marvin Malmuth	1:09.80
2001	Say Florida Sandy	7	Aaron Gryder Aaron Gryder Aaron Tod Gryder is an American Thoroughbred horse racing jockey.Growing up fifteen minutes away from the Santa Anita racetrack, as a boy Gryder had no contact with horses other than his father and his grandparents' interest in attending the nearby races...	Juan Serey	John Rotella	1:08.60
2000	Intidab	7	Robbie Davis Robbie Davis Robbie Glen Davis is a retired American Thoroughbred horse racing jockey.-Early life:Davis grew up in a single parent household forced onto welfare, something that would impact him for the rest of his life....	Kiaran McLaughlin Kiaran McLaughlin Kiaran P. McLaughlin is an American Thoroughbred racehorse trainer. He currently has a blog website, at http://kiaranmclaughlin.com where he updates what horses he has racing for that particular day...	Shadwell Stable	1:10.00
1999	Kashatreya	5	Jean-Luc Samyn Jean-Luc Samyn Jean-Luc Samyn is a jockey in American Thoroughbred horse racing.The son of a pastry chef, Jean-Luc Samyn was one of three children. At age thirteen, he went to work for the stable of trainer John Cunnington at Chantilly, a racecourse about north of Paris city center...	John O. Hertler	Seymour Cohn	1:09.60
1998	Richter Scale	4	Jerry Bailey	William I. Mott	Nancy & Richard Kaster	1:08.80
1997	Punch Line	7	Robbie Davis Robbie Davis Robbie Glen Davis is a retired American Thoroughbred horse racing jockey.-Early life:Davis grew up in a single parent household forced onto welfare, something that would impact him for the rest of his life....	William H. Turner, Jr.	Althea Richards	1:08.80
1996	Not Surprising	6	Robbie Davis Robbie Davis Robbie Glen Davis is a retired American Thoroughbred horse racing jockey.-Early life:Davis grew up in a single parent household forced onto welfare, something that would impact him for the rest of his life....	Judson Van Worp	Robert Van Worp	1:09.00
1995	Waldoboro	4	Eddie Maple Eddie Maple Edward Retz "Eddie" Maple is a retired American thoroughbred horse racing jockey. One of eight brothers and sisters, he was an older brother to jockey Sam Maple who won more than 2,500 races. He began riding horses at age 12 and won his first race as a professional at 17...	Claude R. McGaughey III	Emory A. Hamilton	1:09.60
1994	Friendly Lover	6	Rick Wilson	Joseph H. Pierce, Jr.	Pastime Stable	1:09.60
1993	Lion Cavern	4	Julie Krone Julie Krone Julie Krone , is a retired American jockey. In 1993, she became the first female jockey to win a Triple Crown race when she captured the Belmont Stakes aboard Colonial Affair...	William I. Mott	Sheikh Mohammed Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum , also Sheikh Mohammed, , is the Prime Minister and Vice President of the United Arab Emirates , and absolute monarch of Dubai.-Personal life and education:...	1:10.20
1992	Shining Bid	4	Eddie Maple Eddie Maple Edward Retz "Eddie" Maple is a retired American thoroughbred horse racing jockey. One of eight brothers and sisters, he was an older brother to jockey Sam Maple who won more than 2,500 races. He began riding horses at age 12 and won his first race as a professional at 17...	James E. Morgan	Deborah A. Matz	1:08.20
1991	Diablo	4	Julie Krone Julie Krone Julie Krone , is a retired American jockey. In 1993, she became the first female jockey to win a Triple Crown race when she captured the Belmont Stakes aboard Colonial Affair...	William I. Mott	Bertram R. Firestone	1:08.20
1990	Mr. Nickerson	4	Chris Antley Chris Antley Christopher Wiley Antley was a champion American jockey.He was born in Fort Lauderdale, Florida but grew up in Elloree, South Carolina. He left school at sixteen to ride horses professionally at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland. His first win was on a horse named Vaya Con Dinero...	Mark J. Reid	Robert H. A. Nixon	1:10.40
1989	Dancing Spree	4	Angel Cordero, Jr.	Claude R. McGaughey III	Ogden Phipps Ogden Phipps Ogden Phipps was an American stockbroker, court tennis champion and Hall of Fame member, thoroughbred horse racing executive and owner/breeder, and an art collector and philanthropist...	1:09.40
1988	High Bright	4	Angel Cordero, Jr.	D. Wayne Lukas D. Wayne Lukas Darrell Wayne Lukas is a former educator who became one of the most successful horse trainers in American Thoroughbred horse racing history and a U.S...	H. Joseph Allen H. Joseph Allen H. Joseph Allen is an American businessman and Thoroughbred racehorse owner and breeder.A graduate of the University of Michigan, Allen is a partner with his cousin Peter M. Brant in the privately owned newsprint company, Brant-Allen Industries, Inc...	1:10.00
1987	Groovy Groovy (horse) Groovy was an American Thoroughbred Champion sprint racehorse known for his love of jelly donuts. As at 2011, he is the last horse to break the 130 Beyer Speed Figure having accomplished that milestone in his first two starts of 1987. In the Roseben Handicap at Aqueduct Racetrack he earned a 131...	4	Angel Cordero, Jr.	Jose A. Martin Jose A. Martin Jose A. Martin was an American Thoroughbred horse racing trainer who trained three Champions as well as multiple Grade I winner, Noble Nashua.Jose Martin was the son of U.S. Racing Hall of Fame trainer Frank "Pancho" Martin...	Lone Star Stable	1:07.80
1986	Phone Trick	4	Jorge Velasquez Jorge Velasquez Jorge Velásquez is a thoroughbred horse racing Hall of Fame jockey.Jorge Velasquez career in thoroughbred racing began in his native Panama but as a teenager moved to the United States...	Richard E. Mandella	Howell Wynne	1:09.00
1985	Cannon Shell	6	Declan Murphy	Chester Ross	Seymour Cohn	1:10.80
1984	Believe The Queen	4	Jorge Velasquez Jorge Velasquez Jorge Velásquez is a thoroughbred horse racing Hall of Fame jockey.Jorge Velasquez career in thoroughbred racing began in his native Panama but as a teenager moved to the United States...	H. Allen Jerkens H. Allen Jerkens Harry Allen Jerkens is an American Thoroughbred race horse Hall of Fame trainer.Jerkens' father owned a riding academy on Long Island that led to his interest in horse racing and in 1950 he trained his first winner. Sometimes called the "Giant Killer", he is best known for his upsets...	Bohemia Stable Allaire du Pont Allaire du Pont was an American sportswoman and a member of the prominent French-American Du Pont family of chemical manufacturers who is most remembered as the owner of the Thoroughbred horse racing Hall of Fame champion, Kelso....	1:09.80
1983	Gold Beauty	4	Don Brumfield Don Brumfield Donald Alan Brumfield is a retired American jockey from Kentucky.During his thirty-five year career, Brumfield won 4,573 races in 33,222 rides. He retired from racing in 1989. Brumfield was the "track all-time leading rider in terms of races won " at Churchill Downs, where he won 16 riding titles...	William Curtis, Jr.	Mrs. Philip Hofmann	1:10.40
1982	Shimatoree	3	Mario Pino	Richard E. Dutrow, Sr. Richard E. Dutrow, Sr. Richard E. "Dick" Dutrow, Sr. Richard E. "Dick" Dutrow, Sr. Richard E. "Dick" Dutrow, Sr. (March 8, 1937 - February 19, 1999 was an American Thoroughbred racehorse trainer. Dutrow, along with King T. Leatherbury, John J. Tammaro, Jr. and Hall of Fame inductee Bud Delp, were known as Maryland...	Rif'at Hussain	1:08.60
1981	Joanie's Chief	4	Jean-Luc Samyn Jean-Luc Samyn Jean-Luc Samyn is a jockey in American Thoroughbred horse racing.The son of a pastry chef, Jean-Luc Samyn was one of three children. At age thirteen, he went to work for the stable of trainer John Cunnington at Chantilly, a racecourse about north of Paris city center...	Eugene Jacobs	Peter Barberino	1:09.00
1980	Syncopate	5	Laffit Pincay, Jr. Laffit Pincay, Jr. Laffit Alejandro Pincay, Jr. is a flat racing's all-time winningest jockey. He competed primarily in the United States.-Career:...	Ron McAnally Ron McAnally Ronald L. McAnally is an American Hall of Fame trainer in Thoroughbred horse racing. Called "one of the most honored and respected of North American trainers" by Thoroughbred Times Co., Inc, as a child, he and his four siblings were placed in an orphanage following the death of their mother...	Elmendorf Farm	1:09.20
1979	Moleolus	4	Jean-Luc Samyn Jean-Luc Samyn Jean-Luc Samyn is a jockey in American Thoroughbred horse racing.The son of a pastry chef, Jean-Luc Samyn was one of three children. At age thirteen, he went to work for the stable of trainer John Cunnington at Chantilly, a racecourse about north of Paris city center...	Patrick J. Kelly	Live Oak Plantation Racing	1:10.40