Jose Santos This is Me

 Web References

1. 1. Daily Racing Form - Horse Racing - News Headlines

   www.drf.com/news/article/55411 - [Cached]

   Published on: 5/10/2004   Last Visited: 5/10/2004

   Jose Santos
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   Jockey Jose Santos (above) and Sackatoga Stable have filed a lawsuit against the Miami Herald as a result of the Herald article that implied that Santos had carried an illegal device during last year's Derby.
   
   By MARTY McGEE LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Jockey Jose Santos and Sackatoga Stable last week filed a lawsuit seeking unspecified damages against the Miami Herald and its parent company, Knight Ridder, alleging the jockey was libeled in an article published a week after Santos won the Kentucky Derby last May aboard Sackatoga's Funny Cide.
   
   The suit, filed in U.S. District Court in Louisville by local attorney David Travis, alleges that Santos was misrepresented in the article.
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   The article was accompanied by a photograph of the finish that gave off the initial impression that Santos was carrying a small metallic object in his right hand, along with his whip. The implication was that Santos was carrying an illegal device, such as a battery that could be used to make a horse run faster.
   
   Upon further review, however, the object in question turned out to be an optical illusion, according to a Kentucky Racing Commission investigation.
   
   The Herald article misquoted Santos as saying he was carrying a "cue ring," something that later was found not to exist. Santos later said he meant "Q ray," a brand name for a bronze-colored bracelet worn to ease the symptoms of arthritis.
   
   The article and photo were picked up by virtually every major media outlet in the United States and sparked a major controversy about the integrity of racing in general and Santos in particular. Although the
   
   Commission reacted quickly and thoroughly when announcing May 12 that Santos had been absolved of any wrongdoing, the controversy lingered as the Triple Crown trail went through the Preakness in Baltimore the following weekend.
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   Santos met Travis through a Churchill Downs "host" program that utilizes local citizens to assist owners of Derby horses on Derby weekend.
   ...
   Funny Cide and Santos won the Preakness but finished third in the Belmont, the final leg of the Triple Crown.

2. 2. Daily Racing Form - Horse Racing - Triple Crown News

   www.drf.com/news/article/46180 - [Cached]

   Published on: 5/8/2003   Last Visited: 5/8/2003

   Jose Santos
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   Jose Santos, on Funny Cide, revived his career with his family's support.
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   A Derby victory for Jose Santos, 42, seemed long overdue, considering that in the late 1980's he was the hottest jockey in the country. But it was a long, arduous trip for Santos to get his first Derby victory. No, not for the courageous move to leave for the United States from South America 19 years ago, knowing only how to say "Thank you" in English. This win was about persevering through injuries, loss of business, and personal anguish, and coming out on the right side of each equation at 6:15 Saturday evening.
   
   Santos, a native of Chile, was the leading jockey in purse earnings in the U.S. for four straight years, from 1986 through 1989. He set what was a single-season record in 1988, when his mounts earned $14,877,298. But the past decade or so has been a wild ride.
   
   With his first marriage on the rocks, Santos moved to California in 1990, then went back to New York eight months later. He was in a nasty accident at Belmont Park in 1992, when he broke his right arm and collarbone. He rode a bit in Japan in 1999. In 2000, Santos finished 41st in the nation in purse earnings, and won just 89 races. Two years ago - just as it looked as though his career was starting to rebound - Santos fractured his wrist after winning the Hawthorne Derby. He wound up that year 61st in the nation in purse earnings, with $3,852,254, and with just 67 victories.
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   Which is why when Funny Cide was being led out of the winner's circle, Santos made sure to grab a full complement of roses.
   
   "I promised these to my wife," he said.
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   But the Derby is a different beast all together, and little Jose knew it.
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   "Jose went to Nadia's high school today. All the kids were cheering for him. He had tears in his eyes."
   
   There have been other trappings for the Santos family. On Monday, Jose will be presented with the keys to the city of Saratoga Springs, N.Y. Next Thursday, the family will head to Baltimore for the May 17 Preakness. The Santoses are being dressed for the Preakness by the Saks Fifth Avenue store in Garden City, N.Y.

3. 3. Daily Racing Form - Horse Racing - Track Reports News

   www.drf.com/news/article/47373 - [Cached]

   Published on: 6/19/2003   Last Visited: 6/19/2003

   Jose Santos
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   Edgar Prado, Jose Santos (above), and Patrick Valenzuela head the dozen jockeys who will ride in the seventh All-Star Jockey Championship, a four-race competition at Lone Star Park on Friday evening.
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   This year, the field will be led by Jose Santos, whose popularity has skyrocketed because of his partnership with a gelding named Funny Cide.
   
   Santos will be joined in the starting gate by Edgar Prado and Shane Sellers, past winners of the Jockey Championship, as well as Robby Albarado, Russell Baze, Jorge Chavez, Ryan Fogelsonger, Eddie Martin Jr., Richard Migliore, Mike Smith, Alex Solis, and Pat Valenzuela.
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   "I think with the selections they have made this year, the competition is pretty much [equal]," said Santos.