Sport: Jockey

The young Sandy Hawley was once described as “a hovercraft on horseback” as he created his own distinctive, winning style. He began as a groom, then progressed to exercise boy. Eventually, he fulfilled his dream to ride in races.

Rating a horse and communication were always Sandy’s strong suits. These skills helped him to 515 victories, breaking a record which had stood for two decades.

During his jockey career, Sandy won the Queen’s Plate four times: 1970, 1971, 1975, and 1978. He is in the Canadian Racing Hall of Fame. To his credit, he has received the Lou Marsh Trophy, as Canada’s best athlete in 1973 and 1976. He was given the Eclipse Award as North America’s top jockey, and the Order of Canada, both in 1976, and the Sovereign Award as Canada’s best jockey, in 1978 and 1988.

Since his retirement from riding, Sandy made plans for a career in broadcasting and public relations with the Ontario Jockey Club.

Eurico Da Silva achieved victory in the world All Star Challenge held in Sapporo, Japan. His notable accomplishments include winning 500-plus races over a five-year span competing in Brazil and close to 300 victories in four and a half years in Macau. He also captured the Brazil Derby, a two-mile Grade 1 turf race.

Da Silva began his riding tenure in Canada three weeks after the 2004 Thoroughbred season started. It’s worth noting that his lifetime totals don’t include Brazil and Macau numbers. In 2004, Da Silva made his first year at Woodbine a memorable one, recording 47 victories, two added-money wins, and $2,116,932 in purse earnings.

Among his achievements, Mona Rose (fourth in balloting for Canada’s Champion Turf Female) added to his success, winning the Dance Smartly and Belle Geste Stakes. His first Toronto oval score came aboard Arthur Silvera’s Point Hidden on May 20. Notably, 30 of his wins came in sprints, and he posted 155 top-three finishes in all.

In 2005, he captured the Ontario Fashion Stakes with Colonial Surprise, showcasing his consistent performance. Da Silva moved up two spots in the rankings (13th to 11th) from 2004, with an average win odds of 8.34, which was second-best among top 20 riders.

The following year, in 2006, he upped his win total by 19 from the previous year (61-42) and increased his purse earnings total by nearly $400,000. Da Silva broke like a bullet and went wire-to-wire with Shot Gun Ela in the Ontario Fashion Stakes, marking the second straight year he won the event. He ranked 11th for the second consecutive campaign.

In 2007, Da Silva won 83 races (22 more than in 2006), ranking sixth overall. He also netted six Woodbine stakes wins, teaming with Torquay to take the Valedictory Stakes on December 9, the final added-money feature of the season. Notably, he set Woodbine-best marks across the board in purse earnings ($3,649,504), in the money finishes (228), and starts (651).

Da Silva’s achievements continued to rise, winning seven dashes over the final 10 days of racing. In 2008, he topped the 100-win mark at Woodbine for the first time, securing 105 victories and winning 13 stakes races, marking the second-best mark in the category.