Manuel Ycaza
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Long Island Handicap (1968) (1971)Monmouth Oaks (1968) Mother Goose Stakes (1968) Adirondack Stakes (1969) Black Helen Handicap (1969) Juvenile Stakes (1969) Stars and Stripes Handicap (1969) Sanford Stakes
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Manuel Ycaza (born Carlos Manuel De Ycaza; February 1, 1938 – July 16, 2018) was a
De Ycaza began riding ponies at age six and by age fourteen was riding professionally in Panama. He went on to race in Mexico City before emigrating to the United States in 1956. Within a few years "Manny Ycaza" was winning major races at tracks all over the country. However, the hard-riding, fiery-tempered Ycaza was frequently in trouble with racing officials and despite his unquestioned ability, after major suspensions many owners and trainers were reluctant to hire him. However, stable owner Harry F. Guggenheim took a chance on Ycaza, hiring him for the 1959 racing season. Guggenheim's Cain Hoy Stable was one of the major Thoroughbred racing operations in the U.S. and Ycaza's ten-year affiliation with them saw him become one of the country's top jockeys and be voted the 1964 George Woolf Memorial Jockey Award by his peers.
An icon in his country of birth, Ycaza's success inspired other diminutive Panamanian youngsters to pursue a career as a jockey. In 1962, Sports Illustrated magazine published an article about the "Spanish invasion" of American Thoroughbred horse racing led by Ycaza.[2]
Major race accomplishments
In his first year with Cain Hoy Stable, Ycaza won the 1959
In 1971, injuries forced him into an early retirement but in 1983 he returned to competition, retiring for good the following year. During his career, Manuel Ycaza rode some of the great Thoroughbreds in American racing history and was a winner of 2,367 races with a 22.4 winning percentage. He was inducted in the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 1977.
Personal life and death
A resident of Forest Hills, Queens, Ycaza was a longtime Major League Baseball fan and often attended New York Mets home games.[5]
Ycaza died on July 16, 2018, at the age of 80. He is survived by his second wife Jeanne and two children Manuel Ycaza the third, and his daughter, Carla.[6]
References
- ^ "Manny Ycaza, barrier-breaking jockey, dies at 80".
- ^ Leggett, William. "The Latin Invasion," Sports Illustrated, February 5, 1962.
- ^ Tower, Whitney. "The Preakness: Courage Beats Gall," Sports Illustrated, May 28, 1962.
- ^ "McCardell, Paul. "Preakness Photo," A Century in The Sun (The Baltimore Sun blog), Thursday, May 14, 2009". Retrieved December 14, 2023.
- ^ Staff. "Manuel Ycaza" Archived 2007-07-06 at the Wayback Machine, National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame. Accessed June 18, 2009. "But trips out to Shea Stadium are nothing new for Deycaza, a resident of Forest Hills, N.Y."
- ^ Alicia Wincze Hughes (July 17, 2018). "Hall of Fame Jockey Ycaza Dies at Age 80". Blood Horse. Retrieved December 14, 2023.
External links
- Manuel Ycaza at the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame
- Linda Bement/Manuel Ycaza article
- TIME magazine April 25, 1960 article on Manuel Ycaza
- Jun. 16, 1967 TIME magazine article titled Vacation for Manny
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