American Pharoah's Triple Crown sweep named AP Sports Story of the Year

American Pharoah’s sweep of the three Triple Crown races this year was voted the top sports story of the year by the Associated Press, the organization announced last week.

American Pharoah in 2015 became the first horse to win the Triple Crown in 37 years, following several recent near misses. The feat beat out the “Deflategate” controversy surrounding New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady and the wide-ranging indictment of top FIFA soccer officials on corruption charges.

American Pharoah received 43 first-place votes and a total of 317 points in the AP voting system. Deflategate had 191 points.

Although the Triple Crown sweep topped the list of sports stories, American Pharoah finished third in the voting for AP Male Athlete of the Year despite garnering the most first-place votes, according to the AP. The horse was left off nearly one-third of the ballots, allowing NBA player Stephen Curry, the winner, and golfer Jordan Spieth, the second-place finisher, to generate higher point totals.