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 September
15 - The biggest day of the year for world horseracing is undoubtedly The Breeders'
Cup World Championship day of racing, and this year those races will be called
by a South African-born commentator, the legendary Trevor Denman.
The Breeders' Cup will be held on November 4, 2006 at Churchill Downs, the home
of the Kentucky Derby. The races have been called by Tom Durkin since 1984, the
first year of the Breeders' Cup, but this year the races will no longer be shown
on NBC.
Because of the change of network Durkin, who is contractually obligated to NBC,
cannot call the races. Enter Trevor Denman, who cut his teeth calling races at
Greyville, Scottsville, and Clairwood back in the late 1960s.
Denman is a very familiar voice to anyone who follows the sport of horseracing
in the United States. His voice has also appeared in numerous feature films
(scenes filmed at racetracks tend to use his commentary) as he commentates at
Santa Anita and Del Mar, the premier racecourses in California.
The Breeders' Cup will now be shown on ESPN and South African punters can of
course watch these races live on TV.
Denman originally wanted to become a jockey but the academy felt that he would
eventually grow to be too tall for that profession. It turns out they were
correct and Denman settled for the next best thing, calling the races.
The last time Denman called the July Handicap was in 1983, the year that Tecla
Bluff won it, and he hasn't been back to watch a July since. It would be great
to hear him commentate in this country once again, even if it only on a
'busman's holiday', and hopefully that will happen in the near future.
But for now we can all feel some national pride as a former Johannesburg boy
makes good on the international stage calling the most valuable races in the
world!
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