WHEREAS, Secretariat, one of the best-known thoroughbred racehorses in the history of the sport, was born on March 30, 1970, at Meadow Farm, in Caroline County; and

WHEREAS, Secretariat, a strapping chestnut colt, was unanimously voted America's Horse of the Year as a two-year-old in 1972, the first juvenile ever so honored; and

WHEREAS, as a three-year-old in 1973, Secretariat became the first thoroughbred in 25 years to win racing's coveted Triple Crown—the Kentucky Derby in Louisville, the Preakness Stakes in Baltimore, and the Belmont Stakes in New York—in the brief span of five weeks; and

WHEREAS, Secretariat accomplished the unprecedented feat of breaking the stakes' record in all three Triple Crown races, including the one and one-quarter mile Kentucky Derby in one minute and 59 and two-fifths seconds, the one and three-sixteenths mile Preakness Stakes in one minute and 53 seconds, and the one and one-half mile Belmont Stakes in two minutes and 24 seconds flat; and

WHEREAS, Secretariat's astonishing 31-length victory in the Belmont Stakes is widely perceived as the single greatest performance in the history of the ancient sport of kings; and

WHEREAS, Secretariat was again voted America's Horse of the Year at the conclusion of the 1973 season; and

WHEREAS, as a breeding stallion, Secretariat had a lasting impact on the thoroughbred breed, especially through his daughters from whom additional champions have been issued; and

WHEREAS, Secretariat, who died in 1989, is today considered by many equestrians to be the greatest thoroughbred in the modern history of American horse racing, and is the standard of excellence against which all other racehorses have been measured for a half of a century; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That the General Assembly hereby commemorate Secretariat's Triple Crown victory on the 50th anniversary of the races in 2023; and, be it

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to the Caroline County Board of Supervisors, representing the citizens of Caroline County, as an expression of the esteem in which the memory of Secretariat, among the finest athletes ever born in the Commonwealth, is held by the members of the General Assembly.