Public Invited to Eight Belles Ceremony

Eight Belles, who had to be euthanized on the Churchill Downs racetrack shortly after finishing second in this year’s Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (gr. I), will be memorialized in a ceremony Sept. 7 at 2 p.m. in the Kentucky Derby Museum’s gardens.

The public is welcome to attend the event, and no museum admission will be required for the ceremony.

During the ceremony, Eight Belles’ owner Rick Porter will unveil a plaque honoring the filly. It will be mounted under a magnolia tree where the filly’s remains will be interred. Also expected to take part in the ceremony is trainer Larry Jones, who will make additional remarks.

The ceremony will close with “Candle in the Wind,” chosen by the Porter family and performed by the local Briargate Presbyterian Church’s bell choir.

In the event of inclement weather, the ceremony will take place in the museum’s Great Hall.

Bred in Kentucky by Robert N. Clay and Serengeti Stable, Eight Belles finished her career with a 5-3-1 record from 10 starts and earned $708,650. The daughter of Unbridled's Song won the Honeybee (gr. III) and Fantasy Stakes (gr. II) before taking on colts in the Kentucky Derby.

For more information about the Kentucky Derby Museum, visit www.derbymuseum.org.