Secretariat credited with stakes-record Preakness time

"I didn't know if it was appropriate to cheer but I couldn't help myself,"

Chenery said. "This is a big day."

For more than two hours, the racing commission heard testimony, backed by

modern technology to prove Secretariat's time was actually faster than the

Preakness record of 1:53 2/5, set by Tank's Prospect in 1985 and matched by

Louis Quatorze (1996) and Curlin (2007).

"Justice was served," Chuckas said. "The Secretariat team made a compelling

case that he ran the race in 1:53 flat and added the Preakness record to his

resume. This is terrific news for Mrs. Chenery, who has been diligent in her

fight for nearly 40 years, and the entire sport of horse racing."

The electronic timer in use at Pimlico for the 1973 Preakness recorded a

winning time of 1:55 -- a clocking that quickly became the source of controversy

after two independent clockers from the Daily Racing Form had

individually hand-timed the race at a much faster 1:53 2/5. In the days

following race, the Maryland Racing Commission stewards and later the racing

commission concluded that there were "extenuating circumstances" attendant to

the electronic timer's recording.  As a result, the official time was

subsequently changed to that reported by Pimlico's official hand clocker -- 1:54

2/5.

"It is wonderful for the sport to remove an asterisk and wonderful for the

legacy of Secretariat and his fans, who believed he set the record in all three

Triple Crown races," said Leonard Lusky, who represented Chenery at the hearing.

"This was a labor of love and it was so important because it was Secretariat and

the Preakness, one of the landmark events in horse racing."

The track record for 1 3/16 mile distance at Pimlico is still held by Farma

Way with a time of 1:52 2/5 in the 1991 Pimlico Special.

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