The Ohio-bred champions of 2024 were recently named, with Generous Lover emerging as horse of the year and champion female. She won three stakes in the Buckeye State on the season, including the Best of Ohio Distaff.
Who Dey, winner of the Best of Ohio Endurance, was honored as the state’s champion male runner. That was his only stakes win of the year, but he did place in three open-company stakes in Kentucky, including a runner-up effort in the Grade 3 Matt Winn.
Who Dey was one of several Ohio-breds to run successfully in graded stakes in 2024, along with Grade 3 Iroquois winner and Grade 2 Kentucky Jockey Club runner-up Jonathan’s Way, who was not eligible for traditional Ohio awards, as he did not start in the state. However, the Ohio Thoroughbred Breeders and Owners did honor him with a special merit award for his season.
Fortissimo won four of his five outings, including the Cleveland Kindergarten over Superwolf. Despite finishing third to that one in the Best of Ohio Juvenile, he did enough to earn outstanding 2-year-old male honors.
The other equine awards went to Silver Kiss as outstanding 2-year-old filly; Alwaysintomischief as 3-year-old mal; Practicallyelusive as 3-year-old filly; Back to Ohio as female sprinter; Empire’s Fire as male sprinter; That’s the Way as Ohio-bred claimer; and Villain and Mobil Chic as Ohio-accredited male and female, respectively.
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