Birzer, Leparoux among Woolf Award finalists

Alex Birzer, who won his 4,000th race earlier this month, and Julien Leparoux, who has won two Eclipse Awards, are among the five finalists for the George Woolf Memorial Jockey Award, Santa Anita announced earlier this month.

The other three finalists are Tyler Baze, who rides in California; Jareth Loveberry, who is currently riding at Fair Grounds in New Orleans; and Timothy Thornton, who is based at Delta Downs in Louisiana.

Baze, who through Thursday had 2,988 wins, was the champion apprentice of 2000.

Birzer, based at Delta Downs, won the 4,000th race of his career on Jan. 2. Leparoux, the champion apprentice of 2006 and outstanding jockey of 2009, is booked to ride at Oaklawn Park, Tampa Bay Downs, and Turfway Park in the next week.

The Woolf Award, which can be won once, honors a rider’s achievements and personal character. A ballot among jockeys across the nation determines the winner, which will be announced in March.

The award is named in honor of the late George Woolf, who rode Seabiscuit to victory in a famous 1938 match race against War Admiral. Woolf died as the result of injuries sustained in a spill at Santa Anita in 1946. The Woolf Award was first presented in 1950.

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