Longtime trainer Neil French dies at 68

Trainer Neil French, who overcame health problems in recent years to maintain a small Thoroughbred stable in Southern California, died Saturday of heart failure, according to an announcement released by Santa Anita.

French was 68.

French battled rheumatoid arthritis in the last decade, but was a regular fixture at Santa Anita, using a golf cart to travel to and from his stable on the backstretch to oversee the morning exercise of his runners.

This year, French had three starters at Santa Anita, including Dylans Wild Cat, who was fourth in the California Cup Oaks in January and fifth in the Evening Jewel Stakes on April 3. In the final months of 2020, Dylans Wild Cat, a California-bred filly, finished second in the Golden State Juvenile Fillies at Del Mar and third in the Soviet Problem Stakes at Los Alamitos.

French was at Santa Anita daily in recent weeks before recent heart issues arose.

French had a background in Quarter Horse racing at Los Alamitos, where his father, Arden, trained a stable. Arden French also trained at Caliente in Tijuana, Mexico. Neil French began training in the 1970s.

Some of Neil French’s leading runners were Pencil Point, who won the 1982 Bing Crosby Handicap at Del Mar, and June’s Reward, who won the 1992 California Cup Classic at Santa Anita. French won 257 races.

In a 2015 interview with Daily Racing Form, French candidly spoke of how his health issues had slowed him physically, but had not diminished his enjoyment of training and being around racehorses. In September 2014, French fell on a concrete drain in the Santa Anita stables and suffered a severely broken hip. While hospitalized, he underwent a second operation on his colon. In the aftermath, French suffered a reaction that left him in a coma.

French was on life support, but recovered after a months-long hospital stay and time at a rehabilitation facility. At one point in the latter stages of his recovery, French spent days at the racetrack and nights at the rehab facility.

“I don’t want to stay home,” he said at the time.

French recalled that support from trainers Patty Johnson, Richard Mandella, and John Sadler provided a boost to his morale.

“Even for a small stable, I’ve had one or two decent horses,” he said in 2015. “I’ve been fortunate over the years.”

That summer, Wanstead Gardens won twice for French, and later finished fifth in the Grade 2 Del Mar Handicap in 2016.

French is survived by his mother, Loretta, and three sisters. Services are pending, according to Santa Anita’s statement.