Afleet Alex has hernia surgery

Afleet Alex, winner of the 2005 Preakness and Belmont and champion 3-year-old male that year, underwent surgery on Sept. 26 to repair an inguinal hernia, Gainesway Farm announced late Wednesday afternoon. The 4-year-old Afleet Alex is expected to make a full recovery.

Inguinal hernia is a condition in which part of the intestine or an abdominal organ is displaced through the inguinal ring that leads to the scrotum.

Dr. Rolf Embertson at the Rood and Riddle Equine Hospital in Lexington, Ky., performed the surgery. In a release, the farm described Afleet Alex?s recovery as ?uneventful? and said the colt was expected to return to Gainesway late this week.

Afleet Alex stood his first breeding season this year at Gainesway for a fee of $40,000. The popular runner is most famous for his gutsy performance in the 2005 Preakness, in which he fell almost to his knees after colliding with Scrappy T but still managed to come back and win by 4 3/4 lengths. That performance, along with his Belmont win, catapulted him to 3-year-old championship honors that season.

Afleet Alex stands as the property of Cash Is King Stables, a partnership headed by Chuck Zacney, Jess Jackson, and Gainesway. They announced in September that they would sell one season to the horse at the upcoming Keeneland November breeding stock sale. The proceeds will benefit Alex?s Lemonade Stand, a charity Cash Is King supported throughout Afleet Alex?s racing career.