Diane Crump

The TDN Writers' Room presented by Keeneland returned this week with its first podcast of 2026, and the guest was John Sikura, the owner of Hill 'n' Dale Farms at Xalapa. Sikura was the Gainesway Guest of the Week. While there were several subjects to discuss with Sikura, the prominent farm owner largely focused his attention on racing in California, its problems and what he sees as the industry's obligation to improve the situations at Santa Anita, Del Mar and Los Alamitos. "We need to fix this today," he said....

When Diane Crump died last week at the age of 77, the tributes and obituaries penned in her honor naturally led with the pioneering accomplishment that, more than five decades ago, she was the first woman to ride against men in a North American pari-mutuel horse race. Today, nearly 57 years from that landmark achievement, it can be difficult to grasp just how challenging and arduous a breakthrough that was. It wasn't, for example, just a matter of some trainer deciding, "This young lady can horseback a little bit. I...

Diane Crump, the first female to ride a pari-mutuel race and also the first female to ride in the GI Kentucky Derby, passed away Thursday evening after battling an aggressive form of brain cancer. She was 77. The news was confirmed by Crump's family on social media Friday via her GoFundMe. According to Equibase, Crump rode only 228 winners in a career that spanned 1969 through 1988. But her mark on the sport goes well beyond the number of races she won. Female jockeys were widely rejected in the late...

On February 7, 1969, Diane Crump became the first woman to ride in a parimutuel race, at Hialeah Park. Her participation in the race was so controversial at the time that she required a police escort to get her through the crowd of hostile spectators to the paddock. She was ninth of 12 in the race, and returned to cheers. It took Crump two weeks to ride her first winner, and the following year, she went on to become the first woman to ride in the Kentucky Derby. Crump is...

Keeneland Library's Lecture Series continues this summer with public events that celebrate recently published works about Thoroughbred racing whose authors conducted research at the facility. The series kicks off May 21 with Diane Crump and Mark Shrager discussing Diane Crump: A Horse-racing Pioneer's Life in the Saddle. It continues June 18 with "Celebrating 25 Years: An Evening with The Saratoga Special"; July 16 with Andy Plattner discussing Stymie and it concludes Aug. 20 with Catharine Melin-Moser discussing When Montana Outraced the East: The Rise of Western Thoroughbreds 1886-1900. All events...

A trio of finalists have been announced for the 15th annual Dr. Tony Ryan Book Award. The three finalists are Diane Crump, A Horse-Racing Pioneer's Life in the Saddle, by Mark Sharger; Good Things Come, by Linda Shantz; and Sylvia Rideoutt Bishop, Had a Way With Horses, by Vicki Moon. "This was the year of debut authors, including the fiction finalist [Vicki Moon]," said judge Kay Coyte, a former Washington Post and racing publications editor. "Part of the mission of the Dr. Tony Ryan Book Award is to encourage new...

The Kentucky Derby Museum will open the new "Right to Ride" exhibit Friday, Oct. 16. The exhibit features the history-making first female jockeys in the sport, with a spotlight on the stories of women facing gender discrimination as they fought to ride. Specifically highlighted are women riders who broke down the barriers, including Diane Crump, who was the first woman to ride in the Kentucky Derby 50 years ago. Over 20 hours of oral history video interviews with female riders who had an impact on American racing form the centerpiece...

She knew her horse didn't have a chance in the 1970 Kentucky Derby and so did everyone else, but, still, Diane Crump couldn't avoid the spotlight as the race approached. At least she was used to it. Fifteen months earlier, Crump became the first female to ride in a pari-mutuel race. Now, she was set to make history again, as the first female to ride in the Kentucky Derby. "That whole week, the whole atmosphere, it was just amazing," said Crump. "If this is the sport you love, nothing beats...