KENTUCKY OAKS

Longines Kentucky Oaks 141
The first running of the Kentucky Oaks was on May 19, 1875 when Churchill Downs was known as the Louisville Jockey Club. The race was founded by Meriwether Lewis Clark, Jr. along with the Kentucky Derby. The Oaks and the Derby are the oldest continuously contested sporting events in history, and the only horse races to be held at their original site since its conception. The Longines Kentucky Oaks was modeled after the British Epsom Oaks.

The Longines Kentucky Oaks is considered by some to be among the most popular horse races in American horse-racing society due to its high attendance. It attracts about 100,000 people in attendance a year.