from Standardbred Canada

Mississauga, ON —Trot Insider has learned that 1996 Horse of the Year Continentalvictory has died at the age of 22.

“She has been dealing with a significant health issue for some time,” owner Adam Bowden of Diamond Creek Farm told Trot Insider. “Recently she seemed to have stemmed its advance but she relapsed and we made the very difficult decision to put her down. It was not an easy decision but the most humane one. Everyone loved her.”

USTA/Ed Keys photo

Continentalvictory was the 1996 Horse of the Year.

Born in 1993, Continentalvictory (Valley Victory-Intercontintental) was a two-time divisional champion among a crop of fillies that included the likes of Act Of Grace and Moni Maker. In a stellar racing career, the trotting filly won 19 of 29 starts and banked $1.6 million in purses.

Trained by Ron Gurfein and driven almost exclusively by Mike Lachance, Continentalvictory won 10 of 17 starts at two en route to freshman filly honors. Her season was capped by a 1:55.3 win in the Breeders Crown at Garden State Park, just two-fifths of a second off CR Kay Suzie’s 1:55.1 world record at the time.

At three, Continentalvictory won nine of 12 starts and frequently raced against male trotters. With major stakes wins in the Yonkers Trot and the World Trotting Derby, she’ll always be remembered for her straight-heat win against the boys in the 1996 Hambletonian. The 1:52.1 first heat win established a new world record, and the 1:52.1 first heat and 1:52.4 second heat win times still stand as the world record for fastest two-heat combined time by a 3-year-old trotting filly.

Her exploits at three garnered her 1996 Horse of the Year honors over pacing star Jenna’s Beach Boy.

Continentalvictory eventually retired to the broodmare ranks, and was purchased in 2008 by Diamond Creek Farm. She had nine foals, with the most successful being the ill-fated Gastine 3,1:56.4 ($100,424).

Bowden told Trot Insider that he was planning on selling her final foal, a Credit Winner yearling filly, but those plans have been put on hold.