Venezuelan jockeys to be honored at La Rinconada Racetrack
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Venezuela will pay tribute to four of its most accomplished jockeys – Junior Alvarado, Javier Castellano, Ramón Domínguez, and Emisael Jaramillo – during a special ceremony Sunday at La Rinconada Racetrack, located in the southern part of the capital of Caracas.
Each rider will have a Grade 1 race named in his honor at the country’s premier track. All four are regarded as national sporting icons, celebrated for their success both at home and across North America, where they have firmly established their reputations in the world of Thoroughbred racing.
The Venezuelan racing authorities have organized a special program that will feature the participation of Alvarado, Castellano, and Jaramillo, along with a Jockey Challenge involving several invited riders.
The centerpiece of the day will be the Javier José Castellano Classic, offering a purse of $400,000. The Grade 1 races honoring Junior Alvarado, Emisael Jaramillo, and Ramón Alfredo Domínguez will each carry a $150,000 purse.
Both Domínguez and Castellano were nominated multiple times for Venezuela’s Athlete of the Year award, a distinction traditionally dominated by baseball players. Junior Alvarado may soon join that conversation after an exceptional season highlighted by victories in the Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes aboard Sovereignty, as well as the Breeders’ Cup Distaff with Scylla.
Between Castellano and Domínguez, the country boasts a combined seven Eclipse Awards – four earned by Castellano and three by Domínguez – further underscoring Venezuela’s impact on the sport.
Opened in 1959, La Rinconada has hosted numerous international events, including the Caribbean Classic and the Gran Premio Latinoamericano. The track was designed by California architect Arthur Froehlich, who also worked on the renovations at Aqueduct and Belmont Park in the 1950s and 1960s and designed the iconic Hollywood Park.
La Rinconada has long been a meeting point for some of the greatest names in Latin American racing. Ángel Cordero Jr., Eddie Belmonte, Braulio Baeza, Irineo Leguisamo, and pioneering American female jockeys such as Marjorie Clayton, Diane Crump, Barbara Jo Rubin, and Robyn Smith have all ridden there.
Alvarado and Castellano were both born in Maracaibo, in western Venezuela, while Jaramillo hails from the central town of Tucupido and Domínguez is a native of Caracas. All four launched their professional careers at La Rinconada, leaving a lasting imprint before heading to the United States.
Domínguez and Castellano shared the jockeys’ room at La Rinconada in the mid-1990s. Domínguez was the first to leave, debuting at the now-defunct Hialeah Park in March 1996. Jaramillo, meanwhile, remains the winningest rider in Venezuelan racing history, with 3,141 victories and 14 titles at the Caracas oval.
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