Talk:Julien Leparoux

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"The son of an assistant horse trainer in France, Leparoux knew since he was only five years old that he wanted to be a jockey. Not able to ride racehorses at such a young age, Leparoux began riding competitive show jumpers in Chantilly (France's horse country) when he was 11.  When he became a teenager, Leparoux approached his father about quitting school to go to the French Racing Academy.  Worried about the life a young jockey can lead, Robert told Julien to stay in school, and when he graduated he could do whatever he wanted.

The patience that he showed the next few years is something that Leparoux is renowned for today. He bided his time, turning in excellent marks, and when he turned 18 he set out to America to follow his dream.

Through family friends, Leparoux was able to get in touch with Patrick Biancone. The trainer had conditioned champions in Hong Kong and France, and was now a leading trainer in America. He was also known for nurturing some of France's most successful riders. Biancone agreed to give Julien a job in the stable, and said he might one day be able to ride in the mornings,but made no promises on fulfilling Leparoux's dreams of becoming a jockey.

Julien came to the states and worked hard, finally getting aboard horses in the mornings. And not just horses, Julien worked the champions including Lion Heart, who went on to be second in the Kentucky Derby, and Magistretti, a multiple graded stakes winner on the turf. Julien had a way with horses, and Biancone began to pull that out of him. Hall of Fame rider Gary Stevens was Biancone's stable jock at the time, and he helped Julien fine tune his riding. Julien was so naturally talented, that Stevens has said that he thought Julien was already a jockey in France. He had no clue this was his first time aboard a racehorse.

Things were going great for Leparoux in America. He was working towards his goals, overcoming the language barrier, and he was sitting in the saddle for one of the most powerful trainers in the country. Unfortunately, in France, things were not so good. Robert Leparoux passed away after a battle with cancer before his son ever started in his first race.

Finally in August of 2005, Biancone gave Julien the go ahead to become a jockey. While most apprentices start their careers at bush tracks or small meets, Biancone threw Leparoux to the wolves. The French apprentice was to start at Saratoga Race Course.

The 6 week Saratoga summer meet in New York is the prime East Coast meet of the year. The jockey colony is unbelievable, and the horses are sensational. Biancone thought that this would be a good way for Julien to get some real honest race experience without starting his "bug". ( An apprentice is denoted by an asterick or a 'bug' in racing forms, so beginning jockeys are called bugboys. An apprentice is allowed a ten pound weight break until he wins five races and seven pounds until he has won an additional 30 races. After that, a bug carries a five pound weight break until one year from the time of his fifth winner.)

Well Biancone was half right. Leparoux got some real experience, including 5 trips to the winners circle. His first win was a four way photo finish with longshot Easter Guardian prevailing by a nose. After Saratoga, Leparoux followed the Biancone barn to Turfway Park in Florence, Kentucky. It was there over the Polytrack that Leparoux won his first stakes victory, and his first riding title.

With the retirement of Gary Stevens in November 2005, Leparoux, still an apprentice with only 3 months riding experience, became the first call rider for Biancone. He went on to win the Turfway Park meet, and shattered the track's record of wins per meet: 167 to 150. He also had 6 days where he won five races on the card.

From day one of 2006, Leparoux led the nation in most wins by a jockey and highest percentage of in the money mounts.

Critics were skeptical of the French apprentice, saying that the Turfway meet was small potatoes. "We'll see what happens at Keeneland" was the buzz around town.

Keeneland's Spring meet came, and with it, another record. Leparoux tied with defending champ Rafael Bejarano to win the title. He was the first apprentice in history to win the riding crown at the historic track.

Now fans and the press were starting to pay attention. Julien was skilled beyond his years. He was quiet and still in the saddle, and had a way to bring home a seemingly well beaten horse in front. He started to develop the reputation of a fantastic turf rider, and a very patient rider. Trainers liked that he listened to instructions and actually followed them.

On to Churchill Downs. On May 3, less than a week into the meet, Leparoux bagged 5 wins on the card, and on the Kentucky Oaks undercard, Leparoux won his first two graded stakes victories. In front of record crowds at the newly renovated Churchill Downs, he took the G3 Crown Royal American Turf with Stream Cat in a come from behind thriller, and the G3 Aegon Turf Sprint on Man of Illusion (AUS). Julien was also given a leg up by D. Wayne Lukas in the 132 Kentucky Oaks aboard Ex Caelis.

The French Connection was roaring hot. Julien continued to lead the overall jockey standings, and by the end of May had eclipsed the record of races won by an apprentice at Churchill Downs. In 1982, Travis Hightower booted home 33 winners for the meet. By June, Julien was already in the 50s. His place at the top was hotly pursued by Rafael Bejarano, Churchill's leading rider from the previous two meets and the co-leader at Keeneland. Leparoux, still riding first call for Biancone, was traveling the country and everytime he left, the press would run wild as Bejarano would sweep three or four races a card.

One trip brought the young Frenchman to Belmont Park. In the Just A Game Handicap, Julien went postward on Gorella, a Frenchbred filly that had a devastating turn of foot. Only three fillies challenged the up and coming duo, headed by the speedy mare Pomme Frites. When the field turned for home, Pomme Frites was nearly 10 lengths in front of Gorella moving easily. With timing that belied his experience, Leparoux shook his reins, and within seconds, Gorella had gobbled up all the daylight, and nosed Pomme Frites to win driving. Like a seasoned journeyman rather than an apprehensive apprentice, Leparoux had waited, patient and confident in his filly. Even when the race seemed lost to the crowds, Julien never even uncocked his whip. Gary Stevens said, " a new Iceman has arrived". It was the first Grade 2 win for Leparoux.

Back at Churchill Downs, the race for the jockey's title was getting tight. Bejarano had scraped up enough wins in Leparoux's absences that day to day the leader would change. On June 17, a month before the meet would end, the jockey's race was played out when the two stars went postward in the G2 Fleur De Lis Handicap. Bejarano was the favorite on Churchill specialist Oonagh Macool, and Leparoux was a close second choice with a Louisiana bred filly that seemed to have a serious case of the seconds, Happy Ticket. The finish was a photo with Happy Ticket the victor.

So ended the season. On closing day, Leparoux had won the title, 87-81 over Rafael Bejarano. He was the first apprentice to win the crown in more than 50 years. He was also the only jockey in history to sweep the title at all three major Kentucky tracks.

Back to Saratoga. Still an apprentice, albeit with more seasoning, Leparoux returned to his beginnings with vigor. For the first time since he began riding professionally, Julien did not end up the leading rider at the meet. But he did rack up 28 wins, the most ever for an apprentice in the history of Saratoga.

During the summer, Julien also reached another milestone in his career: he won his first Grade 1 race. At Arlington Park, the French Connection and owner Martin Schwartz were determined to make an impact. Their hopes were that Gorella, who had stamped herself the top female miler in the country, could stretch out her speed to 1 mile 3/16. For a filly that has to stay covered up, the one hole was not the ideal place for Gorella to break, but that was her draw. She faced a full and deep field, and when the gates sprung open, she was left behind. Gorella remained at the back of the pack until the turn for home. Swinging six wide, Leparoux waited until the field had entered the straight and unleashed Gorella. With a furlong to go, she breezed around the entire field, overtook the leaders and won going away with Leparoux waving a triumphant hand in the air. She was racing's newest millionaire filly, and he was racing's newest Grade One winning jockey.

Leparoux went back to Turfway and lost his apprentice allowance on September 25. Now was the real test. Could Julien continue to dominate the standings without his weight allowance? Yes. Leparoux went on to win the Turfway meet, including winning 5 straight (of his 6 mounts) less than a week after losing his bug. His 38 wins also broke the record for most wins in the fall meet, a mark that was set in 1968. Anyone who was still a critic had nothing left to say.

He was still on a role when the Keeneland Fall meet came around. He and Gorella solidified their claim to the top with a determined victory in the G2 First Lady Stakes. Biancone and Schwartz also sprung a big surprise when they ran their excellent turf filly Asi Siempre in the G1 Juddmonte Spinster Stakes over the Polytrack. At 6-1, Julien pulled clear of the field to easily win on the mare's first start off the grass. In the jockey's race, Julien was alone at the top this time, defeating several of the best jockeys in the nation. Also at the top was Patrick Biancone, who led all Keeneland trainers by wins.

2006 was a year of records for Leparoux. In addition to his 5 riding titles, he also had a nation leading 403 winning rides, and far surpassed the earnings record set by an apprentice with nearly $12.5 million in his bankroll. He won 25 stakes including 2 Grade 1s, 4 Grade 2s, and 6 Grade 3 events.

Leparoux welcomed in 2007 with a nod in the Eclipse Awards. He, along with Rosie Naparvik and Martin Garcia were tapped for an excellent apprentice year. In a nearly unanimous vote, Leparoux took the honors, and dedicated the award to his father:

"He never got to see me race, but I think he is proud of me right now,"

Even though the Biancone barn headed west for the winter, Leparoux decided to keep Kentucky as his home base. He currently rides part time at Turfway Park and part time in California. In addition to the various riding titles and the Eclipse, Julien was also the subject of the 2006 Eclipse winning photo, was named the top apprentice jockey for the state of New York, and top all round jockey for Kentucky."


 * Some of this is useful but needs verification. Handicapper 18:47, 24 July 2007 (UTC)

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