Affirmed Horse

Even veteran horsemen are surprised when told that Affirmed and John Henry both were foaled in 1975, only 15 days apart. Even Ron McAnally, who trained John Henry when he was winning seven Eclipse Awards between 1980 and 1985, had to be reminded. "It does come back to me now," McAnally said. "After John Henry was retired, I remember talking to Laz Barrera (Affirmed's late trainer), who was a good friend.

It was a legendary rivalry that has galloped through time without any yanking on the reins. It was Bird-Magic, Ali-Frazier, Sampras-Agassi. Except, they could tell us about theirs. Thirty years ago, Affirmed and Alydar glorified the three classic horse races that define their sport. When Affirmed beat Alydar by a length and a half in the Kentucky Derby, a neck in the Preakness and a head in the Belmont, sports fans thought they would never again see anything quite like it. And they haven't.

Steve Cauthen saw Affirmed at the farm about a month ago. "He had had recent surgery and was in pain," Cauthen said. "But this was Affirmed, and he had such a great heart. He always looked younger than what he was. You just didn't ever think of Affirmed dying. You thought he was a horse that would live forever." But the pain was too much.

Every time Steve Cauthen watches a videotape of Affirmed narrowly beating Alydar in the 1978 Belmont Stakes, the former jockey gets chills. "It was the most exciting race I ever rode in," Cauthen said the other day. "Just the buildup to it was unbelievable. Usually the anticipation is greater than the real thing, but that Belmont was the exception."