Sport: Thoroughbred Racing
Born: September 4, 1951
Town: Haddon Township, New Jersey
Anthony S. Black was born September 4, 1951 in Mt. Holly and grew up in Haddon Township, NJ with his brother, Nick. Thoroughbred racing was in the family’s blood. His mother’s brother, Sam Boulmetis, was one of the region’s top young jockeys, winning the Monmouth Handicap and Oceanport Stakes the year Tony was born. A wiry, athletic boy, Tony was a very good high school wrestler, winning championships as a junior and senior. But his sports destiny lay elsewhere.
Tony missed his graduation in 1970 to ride his first mount, a 52—1 shot named Stand By Me. The horse was scratched, but Tony rode him to victory at Liberty Bell Park in Philadelphia a few days later.
A regular at Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New York racetracks, Tony captured his first major victory in 1976, winning the Vosburgh Stakes at Belmont Park aboard My Juliet. The horse had been inactive for months after a foreleg injury and Tony outdistanced Kentucky Derby winner Bold Forbes in an impressive performance.
Over the next 30 years, Tony became one of the top jockeys in the Delaware Valley and was a regular visitor to the winner’s circle. He won the Cotillion Handicap aboard Suede Shoe in 1977 and the Bold Ruler Handicap aboard Dave’s Friend in 1981. In 1981, Tony rode Classic Go Go in the Kentucky Derby and finished just out of the money. He also won the final race at Garden State Race Track, and was still wearing his silks when he watched it burn down from across Rte. 70. Tony’s greatest talent was holding a lead—once he got out in front, he was extremely difficult to catch.
In late-July 1993, Tony won his final three races at the Atlantic City Race Track, both races a day later at Philadelphia Park, and his first four races the same day back in Atlantic City to make it 9 in a row. That tied a North American record that had stood since 1930.
In 2006, Tony won his 5,000th race, joining 20 other riders. Seven years later, as he recovered from his second fractured collarbone, he announced that he would keep riding until he won a race on a horse owned by his son., Anthony Jr. He did so in 2013 aboard Smart Tori. It was the 61-year-old’s 5,200th and final victory. He retired with over $63 million in earnings—placing him among the Top 100 jockeys all-time.
Tony still lives in Haddon Township, a few doors down from his boyhood home.