(WARRENTON, VA —- 3/28/2024) —- Racing fans in Ashland, Virginia will celebrate Secretariat — the Commonwealth’s most famous thoroughbred racehorse — with an annual birthday bash this Saturday March 30 and this celebration will offer something extra special. After a year of being trailered around the country to tracks like Churchill Downs, Pimlico, Belmont, Saratoga and Virginia’s two pari-mutuel tracks — Colonial Downs and Shenandoah Downs (harness) — for fans to enjoy, sculptor Jocelyn Russell’s magnificent bronze statue of Big Red has been permanently placed at the new Reynolds Family Plaza just outside the Randolph Macon college campus grounds in Ashland. Locals and visitors can now enjoy this famous Virginia-bred 365 days a year.
A formal dedication of the “Secretariat Racing Into History” statue will take place this Saturday at 2 PM and feature guest speakers like Russell, Kate Chenery Tweedy and others, along with musical performances and a ribbon cutting. The Virginia Equine Alliance, whose mission is to sustain, promote and expand the horse breeding and horse racing industries in the Commonwealth, will be live streaming the entire ceremony via its Virginia Horse Racing YouTube and Facebook channels so fans around the country – and world — can enjoy the special occasion. Viewers can simply click here on Saturday and link directly to the festivities.
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