Legacy

Frank Whiteley (on right with horse Tom Rolfe, after The Preakness.)

Frank Whiteley Jr. is one of the greatest racehorse trainers of all time. Whiteley was born in 1915 and raised in Centreville, Maryland. During his youth, he was around horses and that's when he decided he wanted to train racehorses. At 21 years of age, Frank became a professional trainer in his home state. 

Frank Whiteley's first champion was a horse by the name of Tom Rolfe. Tom Rolfe was Whiteley's first classic winner. The classic race that Tom Rolfe won was The 1965 Preakness Stakes. Whiteley's second champion was a horse named Damascus. Damascus won the 1967 Horse of the Year award. This award is a big honor because it's based on how many stakes races they win that season. Whiteley is most well known in the racing world because he trained the brilliant filly, Ruffian. Ruffian is considered to be one of the greatest American thoroughbreds of either gender. Ruffian was undefeated in 1974 and 1975. She became champion filly because of her dominant style on the racetrack. The only race she lost was the race that cost her her life. A few years after Ruffian, Whiteley had another champion, Forego. He was a bay gelding. There aren't many geldings that can accomplish as much as Forego did. Forego won an Eclipse Award (an award that honors the champion of the sport) for being the Outstanding Older Male Horse for 4 consecutive years (1974-1977). He also won 3 consecutive Eclipse Award for being Horse of the Year (1974-1976) and 1 for being Outstanding Sprint Horse (1974). Whiteley trained several champion racehorses, these 4 are his most remembered.  Frank Whiteley passed away in May 2008 and some of his memorable racehorses are his legacy.