{"id":23591,"date":"2026-05-08T08:48:04","date_gmt":"2026-05-08T08:48:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/?p=23591"},"modified":"2026-05-08T08:48:04","modified_gmt":"2026-05-08T08:48:04","slug":"only-when-history-was-written-in-front-of-the-world-did-people-finally-realize-cherie-devaux-was-never-just-another-name-in-horse-racing-and-some-people-only-truly-reveal-themselves-the-mom","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/?p=23591","title":{"rendered":"ONLY WHEN HISTORY WAS WRITTEN IN FRONT OF THE WORLD DID PEOPLE FINALLY REALIZE: CHERIE DEVAUX WAS NEVER JUST ANOTHER NAME IN HORSE RACING \u2014 AND SOME PEOPLE ONLY TRULY REVEAL THEMSELVES THE MOMENT THEY CHANGE HISTORY FOREVER.\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Cherie DeVaux trainer of Golden Tempo #19, is the first female trainer to win the Kentucky Derby, celebrates with the trophy in the winner\u2019s circle following the 152nd running of the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs on May 02, 2026 in Louisville, Kentucky. Michael Reaves | Getty ImagesMichael Reaves | Getty Images<\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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A\u00a0Saratoga Springs\u00a0native made\u00a0Kentucky Derby history Saturday, becoming the first female trainer to win the \u201cRun for the Roses.\u201d<\/p>\n

Cherie DeVaux, 44, from Upstate New York, trained Golden Tempo, who surged past 17 horses in the final stretch to win the first leg of the Triple Crown. Jockey Jose Ortiz guided the bay colt through traffic before the late charge DeVaux said was typical for him.<\/p>\n

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\u201cThat\u2019s how he runs, so it\u2019s not like we really did anything different than he had done in his previous starts,\u201d DeVaux told<\/p>\n

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Cherie Devaux celebrates with Golden Tempo #19 as she becomes first woman to win the The Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs on May 02, 2026 in Louisville, Kentucky. Sarah Anne Cohen | Getty ImagesSarah Anne Cohen | Getty Images<\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

DeVaux said Golden Tempo has always been slow to break from the gate, prompting her team to try blinkers and other adjustments to help him stay focused. Even his rider has described him as lazy, but the horse delivered in his biggest start yet.<\/p>\n

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In an interview on\u00a0TODAY, host Craig Melvin asked DeVaux whether she considers herself a trailblazer.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, I consider myself a horse trainer and I just happen to be a female,\u201d she said. \u201cBut, you know, it\u2019s quite an honor to be the first female trainer to win a Kentucky Derby.\u201d<\/p>\n

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DeVaux is also just the second to win a Triple Crown race, joining Jena Antonucci, who won at the 2023 Belmont Stakes.<\/p>\n

DeVaux trains at\u00a0Keeneland in Lexington, Kentucky, and comes from a family with deep roots in Standardbred racing. Her brother, Jimmy DeVaux, has won more than 5,000 races as a driver and trainer.<\/p>\n

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\"152nd<\/div>\n<\/div>
Cherie DeVaux, trainer of Golden Tempo, looks on during morning workouts ahead of the running of the 152nd Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs on April 27, 2026 in Louisville, Kentucky. Michael Reaves| Getty ImagesMichael Reaves| Getty Images<\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Before she pursued horse racing full time, DeVaux studied pre-med in college with plans to become a physical therapist, according to\u00a0CBS News. She grew up riding horses and said she wanted a career that would allow her to afford the expensive hobby.<\/p>\n

After college, DeVaux worked as a stable employee for Saratoga trainer Chuck Simon before becoming an assistant trainer for Chad Brown, the two-time Preakness Stakes-winning trainer from Mechanicville, New York. She spent eight years working under Brown before earning her trainer\u2019s license in 2018.<\/p>\n

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DeVaux has more than $30 million in career earnings and 272 wins through Dec. 17, 2025.<\/p>\n

As of publication, a decision had not been made on whether Golden Tempo will race next in the\u00a0Preakness Stakes on May 16. DeVaux said the team will consider it if the horse is healthy and in top form, but ultimately the decision will come down to how he responds after the Derby.<\/p>\n

The final leg in the Triple Cown, the Belmont Stakes, will take place in\u00a0Saratoga Springs\u00a0on June 6.<\/p>\n

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\"Historic<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Cherie DeVaux trainer of Golden Tempo #19, is the first female trainer to win the Kentucky Derby, celebrates with the trophy in the winner\u2019s circle following the… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":23592,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-23591","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23591","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=23591"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23591\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":23593,"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23591\/revisions\/23593"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/23592"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=23591"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=23591"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/grow24.us\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=23591"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}