SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. (AP) — Kona Gold and late trainers Christophe Clement and John Shirreffs were among 11 elected to the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame on Thursday.
Kona Gold won the Eclipse Award for champion sprinter in 2000, when he won the Breeders' Cup Sprint. He raced from 1998-2003, with 14 wins in 30 career starts and earnings of over $2.2 million.
Clement, who died last year, won 2,576 races with purse earnings of $184,127,449 from 1991-2025. He trained three-time Eclipse Award winner Gio Ponti, as well as 2014 Belmont Stakes winner Tonalist.
Shirreffs, who died this year, trained the winners of 596 races, including 113 graded events, with purse earnings of $58,581,916. He won the 2005 Kentucky Derby with 50-1 longshot Giacomo and later trained Hall of Fame mare Zenyatta, the Horse of the Year in 2010.
In the Historic Review category, horses Gulch and Mongo and the late trainer David A. Whiteley were chosen by a committee vote.
In the Pillars of the Turf category, the late Prince Khalid bin Abdullah of Saudi Arabia, veterinarian Dr. Robert Copelan, Seth W. Hancock, G. Watts Humphrey Jr., and the late Joseph E. Widener were elected by a committee vote.
The 2026 Hall of Fame class will be enshrined on Aug. 7 in Saratoga Springs, New York.
AP horse racing: https://apnews.com/hub/horse-racing
Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
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