Hernandez wins Mike Venezia Award

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Jockey Brian Hernandez Jr, who won this year’s Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks, was selected as the winner of the Mike Venezia Award, presented annually to a jockey who displays the extraordinary sportsmanship and citizenship that personified Venezia, who died as the result of injuries suffered in a spill in 1988. Venezia won more than 2,300 races during his 25-year career.

Hernandez was chosen by a committee comprised of members of the Venezia family, representatives of The Jockeys’ Guild, and retired Eclipse Award-winning jockey Richard Migliore. Hernandez will be recognized at Saratoga Race Course on Aug. 23.

“As a rider, I try to win races on the track and represent the sport as best I can off the track,” Hernandez said in a press release. “To be recognized with the Venezia Memorial Award is an honor. My family and I look forward to celebrating this award and thanking the Venezia family here at Saratoga Race Course.”

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