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California Chrome Wins The Kentucky Derby

California Chrome, ridden by Victor Espinoza, comes out of the fourth turn en route to winning the 140th running of the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs on Saturday.
Andy Lyons
/
Getty Images
California Chrome, ridden by Victor Espinoza, comes out of the fourth turn en route to winning the 140th running of the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs on Saturday.

California Chrome won the 140th running of Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in Louisville Saturday. The horse was favored to win, despite quirks that set him apart from his more traditional competitors.

"Derby dreams do come true," an announcer said after the race.

As NBC Sports reports:

"California Chrome, who gained fame for his rags-to-riches tale outside the traditional rise of champion thoroughbreds, originally was a 5-2 morning line favorite, ultimately going off as a 2-1 favorite at post time."

Chrome's trainer, 77-year-old Art Sherman, became the oldest Derby trainer to win, The Associated Press reports. Sherman told the AP he thought jockey Victor Espinoza rode the horse perfectly: "I never gave him any instructions. I just said, 'You know this horse, go for it.' "

The Kentucky Derby website has more about the rest of the horses and those who tend to them, including jockey Rosie Napravnik, who was vying to be the first female jockey to win.

Watch the race, as broadcast on NBC:

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Dana Farrington is a digital editor coordinating online coverage on the Washington Desk — from daily stories to visual feature projects to the weekly newsletter. She has been with the NPR Politics team since President Trump's inauguration. Before that, she was among NPR's first engagement editors, managing the homepage for NPR.org and the main social accounts. Dana has also worked as a weekend web producer and editor, and has written on a wide range of topics for NPR, including tech and women's health.