The Belmont Stakes

Each June the finest three-year-old thoroughbreds in the world travel to New York City to race in the "third jewel of the Triple Crown," the Belmont Stakes. Regarded as the "Test of the Champion," the Belmont Stakes is run on the grand one and a half mile main track at Belmont Park.

The storied tradition of the Belmont Stakes dates back to June 19, 1867 when Ruthless won the inaugural running at Jerome Park. The namesake of the race, August Belmont, was dubbed the "King of Fifth Avenue." Using his lofty social standing and tremendous wealth he supported the rise of thoroughbred racing in New York. In 1905, after two years of construction, his son August Belmont, Jr. opened Belmont Park, which now accommodates capacity crowds of over 85,000 people.

Belmont Park has been the host of some of the most thrilling moments in sports history including Secretariat's overwhelming victory to complete the Triple Crown in 1973. Ten other horses have been able to complete the coveted Triple Crown, yet remarkably Secretariat's record time of 2:24 remains the fastest Belmont time by two seconds.