Hall of Fame Race Horse Jockey. Nicknamed "Iceman" because of his steady nerves and flawless sense of timing, he was born on a ranch in Alberta, Canada. He received his start competing in races at bush tracks and across the border at Montana fairs while a teenager. He suffered from diabetes and had to regulate his diet and exercise which limited his number of mounts. He rode some of the finest horses of his era but considered Seabiscuit the best of all. In the 1938 Hollywood Gold Cup, he brought Seabiscuit from 14 lengths back to win the race. He was the nation's leading stakes-winning jockey from 1942 to 1944. Tragedy struck in the late afternoon during the fourth race at Santa Anita Park on January 3, 1946. George Woolf, aboard "Please Me," was rounding the club house turn when fans saw him slip from the saddle probably unconscious, a symptom of dieting and diabetes, pitching the famed jockey head first into the ground before a stunned crowd. He was taken to St. Luke's Hospital in Pasadena with a brain concussion, and died the next morning. He was enshrined in the National Thoroughbred Racing Hall Of Fame in 1955, Canada's Sports Hall of Fame in 1956 and the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame in 1976. His greatest honor was the establishment in 1985 of the "George Woolf Jockey Award" which by a jockey vote nationwide determines the best rider of the year and is racing's most prestigious accolade. His death led to the introduction of the Caliente Safety Helmet that is now mandatory riding equipment. In a church service attended by 1,500 people, Gene Autry added to the sadness with his singing of the western song "Empty Saddles in the Old Corral."
Hall of Fame Race Horse Jockey. Nicknamed "Iceman" because of his steady nerves and flawless sense of timing, he was born on a ranch in Alberta, Canada. He received his start competing in races at bush tracks and across the border at Montana fairs while a teenager. He suffered from diabetes and had to regulate his diet and exercise which limited his number of mounts. He rode some of the finest horses of his era but considered Seabiscuit the best of all. In the 1938 Hollywood Gold Cup, he brought Seabiscuit from 14 lengths back to win the race. He was the nation's leading stakes-winning jockey from 1942 to 1944. Tragedy struck in the late afternoon during the fourth race at Santa Anita Park on January 3, 1946. George Woolf, aboard "Please Me," was rounding the club house turn when fans saw him slip from the saddle probably unconscious, a symptom of dieting and diabetes, pitching the famed jockey head first into the ground before a stunned crowd. He was taken to St. Luke's Hospital in Pasadena with a brain concussion, and died the next morning. He was enshrined in the National Thoroughbred Racing Hall Of Fame in 1955, Canada's Sports Hall of Fame in 1956 and the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame in 1976. His greatest honor was the establishment in 1985 of the "George Woolf Jockey Award" which by a jockey vote nationwide determines the best rider of the year and is racing's most prestigious accolade. His death led to the introduction of the Caliente Safety Helmet that is now mandatory riding equipment. In a church service attended by 1,500 people, Gene Autry added to the sadness with his singing of the western song "Empty Saddles in the Old Corral."
Bio by: Donald Greyfield
Family Members
Advertisement
See more Woolf memorials in:
Records on Ancestry
Advertisement
