A picture of Ron Turcotte, aboard Secretariat, turning for a look at the field many lengths behind in the 1973 Belmont Stakes has become one of racing’s iconic images. Photo: AP
Ron Turcotte, who famously rode Secretariat to the Triple Crown in 1973 to earn an enduring place in horse racing lore, died on Friday, at the age of 84.
Turcotte’s long-time friend and business partner Leonard Lusky said the Canadian-born Hall of Famer died of natural causes at his home near Grand Falls, New Brunswick.
In a career spanning nearly two decades, Turcotte won the Kentucky Derby, Preakness and Belmont Stakes twice each.
But he will go down in history as the jockey who guided Secretariat on an electrifying Triple Crown run in 1973 – a sweep that ended a Triple Crown drought that had stretched back to Citation’s treble in 1948.
