Churchill Downs Racetrack, home of the world famous Kentucky Derby and
Kentucky Oaks, has entered into a long-term agreement with internationally
renowned Swiss watchmaker Longines to serve as entitlement partner of the
Kentucky Oaks and to retain its role as official watch and timekeeper of the
Kentucky Derby.
As a result of its existing and expanded partnership, the Kentucky Oaks has
been renamed the “Longines Kentucky Oaks,” and Longines is the official
timekeeper of Churchill Downs Racetrack. Longines will host multiple events
surrounding Longines Kentucky Oaks Day, Friday, and the famed “Run for the
Roses” on Saturday.
As it has in the past, Longines will award watches from the elegant Longines
Saint-Imier Collection to the winning horses’ owner, trainer and jockey on both
race days. A Longines digital countdown clock is currently featured on the
Churchill Downs website, www.KentuckyDerby.com, as the official countdown to the
“Greatest Two Minutes in Sports.”
Represented by tennis legend and longtime Ambassador of Elegance Stefanie
Graf, Longines will have a strong presence throughout Churchill Downs and other
Derby-affiliated events including Taste of Derby, the Longines Kentucky Oaks
Fashion Contest and the Winner’s Party.
Additionally, Longines will sponsor the Churchill Distaff Turf Mile presented
by Longines on Kentucky Derby afternoon and will have timepieces and branded
clocks on display throughout the Churchill Downs facility. The brand’s logo will
also be prominently featured on the official Kentucky Derby Red Carpet,
racetrack and other surrounding areas.
Longines Kentucky Oaks 139 is the Kentucky Derby’s $1 million companion race
for three-year-old fillies at 1 1/8 miles and is televised on NBC Sports from
5-6 p.m. (EDT). The Longines Kentucky Oaks features a “Ladies First” theme,
continuing the “Pink Out!” tradition which encourages all attendees to wear pink
to the track. The Longines Kentucky Oaks Fashion Contest will celebrate elegant
Derby style and will award one lucky woman who successfully models her own
personal ensemble on the “pink carpet” a stainless steel and rose gold Longines
Saint-Imier Collection watch featuring a stunning diamond bezel.
“Longines Kentucky Oaks Day is all about the ladies,” Churchill Downs
President Kevin Flanery said. “Our female fans continue to respond favorably to
the new traditions of fashion and fun that we have been bringing them over these
last few years, and we feel that the elegant Longines brand is a natural fit for
the feminine spirit of the Longines Kentucky Oaks.”
“Our passion at Longines is equestrian sports, so we are delighted to return
for a third year as the official watch and timekeeper of the Kentucky Derby and
to expand our partnership to include the Longines Kentucky Oaks,” Longines
President Walter von Känel said. “This partnership embodies the Longines brand
image and philosophy stated in its slogan ‘Elegance is an attitude.'”
Longines Kentucky Oaks Day Activities:
The official color of the Longines Kentucky Oaks is pink in celebration of
all the ladies. The Pink Out encourages all Oaks attendees to wear pink or
incorporate pink into their attire to show their support for cancer survivors.
Churchill Downs will be decked out in pink as well, including pink-colored
bunting, flower beds, flags and jockeys’ and pony riders’ apparel. Churchill
Downs bugler Steve Buttleman will sport a pink uniform as he calls horses to the
post throughout Longines Kentucky Oaks Day.
Ladies of all ages in attendance on Longines Kentucky Oaks Day can enter the
Longines Kentucky Oaks Fashion Contest for the chance to win a stainless steel
and rose gold Longines Saint-Imier Collection watch featuring a stunning diamond
bezel. Entrants showcasing their finest Longines Kentucky Oaks attire will be
judged on the “Pink Carpet” inside Gate 10. Participants are judged by how well
they incorporate pink into their ensemble. Coverage of the contest appears on
NBC Sports Network.
The 2013 Survivors Parade presented by Kroger provides some of the most
memorable and touching moments as cancer survivors invited by Churchill Downs
parade along the main track just moments before the running of the Longines
Kentucky Oaks. This year, Churchill Downs has invited back participants from the
2012 Survivor Parade which was interrupted by storms last year.
Kentucky Oaks Day — an unofficial Louisville holiday with many schools and
businesses closed — is the third largest attended horse race in America only
behind the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes. In 2012, 112,552 attended the
festivities, which marked the 12th time in the last 13 years that attendance
topped the 100,000 mark. With a $1 million guaranteed purse, the Longines
Kentucky Oaks is the most lucrative American horse race for three-year-old
fillies. Twenty-six Oaks winners have gone on to be crowned with an Eclipse
Award as the U.S. champion three-year-old filly and nine are enshrined in
racing’s Hall of Fame.
The lofty purse reflects the Oaks’ status and importance as a sports and
entertainment event. Wagering on the 12-race card in 2012 was a record $39.9
million, which included an unprecedented $11.8 million on the Oaks alone. The
maximum number of starters in the race is 14, and at least 13 fillies have been
in the starting gate for five of the last seven years. The winner receives a
silver trophy, a garland of pink star-gazer lilies and an estimated $564,200
payday.
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