Diamond Jubilee - Triple Crown winner?

The 1900 Triple Crown Winner - Diamond Jubilee

The unbeaten Camelot is as short as 1/4 with some firms to be the first Triple Crown winner since 1970.  Camelot's win at Epsom this year was the centrepiece of the first day of Her Majesty's Diamond Jubilee weekend celebrations. In this the Diamond Jubilee year will Camelot live up to the year's Triple Crown winning namesake?

In 1900 the temperamental Diamond Jubilee (sire - St Simon & dam - Perdita) secured the Triple Crown for his royal owner HRH Prince of Wales (later to be King Edward VII).  Named Diamond Jubilee due to him having been foaled in 1897 the year of Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee. The talented but rampagious bay colt had only modest form as a two year old winning one race out of six starts.  His trainer Richard Marsh keeping faith believed that he would improve with age. Marsh also felt he had classic ability and that he would be more effective over a further as the two year old sprint races did not show his true potential.

Diamond Jubilee was an unpredictable colt with a violent nature who often delayed starts through his antics and even kicked a spectator on one occasion.   The young Herbert Jones (19) had a better relationship with him than more experienced colleagues and was to pilot him to his three classic wins. Like Camelot his first race as a three year old was in the 2000 Guineas. Diamond Jubilee followed up this win with a win again at HQ in the Newmarket Stakes before going to Epsom  as the 6/4 favourite. In winning the Derby that year he equalled the course record of his brother (the well thought of Persimmon).  His next race was in the Prince of Wales Stakes where his prohibitive weight meant that he was to lose. Then at Sandown in the Eclipse he destroyed the field with another course record in what many considered to be his best race. Before the St Leger he was up to his old tricks and it took connections twenty minutes to saddle him before he went out to win the final classic completing the Triple Crown. His last race of the season was in the Jockey Club Stakes at Newmarket - again he played up refusing to leave the paddock before going on to finish down the field. Defeat aside he was crowned that year as the undoubted champion of England.

By the 1901 season  the Prince of Wales had become King and Diamond Jubilee was leased to the Duke of Devonshire who raced three times. As a four year old he came across an old rival Epsom Lad who had beaten him as a two year old. In each race - Prince of Wales Stakes, Eclipse and Jockey Club Stakes he was beaten by his foe. The season ending he was retired to stud.

Sport and racing tends to like coincidences - was it always meant to be that there would be a Triple Crown winner in this year of the Diamond Jubilee? May be there is something in the name and its legacy.