Queen's Plate Entries are here
Now that the American Triple Crown is over, the Canadian Triple Crown is just getting started. This year marks the 146th running of the Queen's Plate, Canada's premier race for 3 year olds at a mile and a quarter with a purse of $1,000,000 Canadian. This race is the first leg of the Canadian Triple Crown with the Prince of Wales Stakes at Fort Erie and the Breeders' Stakes at Woodbine comprising the other two legs.
The name of the race is a bit of a misnomer since the trophy isn't even a plate but a gold cup about a foot high with a beaver on top. King Charles II began awarding silver plates as racing prizes in the seventeenth century, but as variety was sought in the prizes, other pieces of silver and eventually other metals were used.
The race is known as the "gallop for the guineas" as the purse also includes an extra 50 Guineas to the winner (about $100) in the form of a draft from the Royal Privy Purse which is presented by the Queen's representative at the race. Minting of guineas was discontinued in England during the reign of George III whose forebear, George I, had instituted the gift of 50 guineas in racing, a tradition that remains though the guineas do not. <p> Despite the race being restricted to Canadian breds, some very nice horses have won in the past including Northern Dancer, Kennedy Road, With Approval, Izvestia, Dance Smartly, and Awesome Again. In 2000 the race was won by Scatter the Gold, a 3/4 sibling to that year's Kentucky Derby winner Fusaichi Pegasus. In 2001, Scatter the Gold's full sister Dancethruthedawn won not only the Labatt Woodbine Oaks but went on to beat the boys and take the Queen's Plate as well. This year their half-brother, Dance with Ravens, will try to carry on the family tradition of Queen's Plate winners.
The post position draw for the Queen's Plate will be held on Thursday morning. Post time for the Plate will be 5:07pm on Sunday June 26nd and the race will be televised in Canada and simulcast to many locations throughout the United States.
Below are the contenders for the 2005 Queen's Plate with links to profiles with lots of information for each.
| Horse | Owner | Trainer | Jockey |
| Horse | Owner | Trainer | Jockey |
| Ablo | Mickey & Phyllis Canino, Bill Werner and Roger Atffield | Roger Attfield | Gerry Olguin |
| Dance with Ravens | Sam-Son Farm | Mark Frostad | Todd Kabel |
| Get Down | West Point Thoroughbreds | Nancy Triola | Richard Migliore |
| Gold Strike | Harlequin Ranches | Reade Baker | Jim McAleney |
| Granique | Knob Hill Stable | Alec Fehr | Corey Fraser |
| King of Jazz | Buckram Oak Farm | Carl Nafzger | Rafael Bejarano |
| Runnaway Mon | Ivan Dalos | Mark Casse | Emile Ramsammy |
| Three in the Bag | Castletop Stable | Stanley Hough | Robert Landry |
| Wild Desert | Daniel Borislow, Carl Gessler Jr. & Partners | Robert Frankel | Pat Valenzuela |
