Cody's Wish announced as 'Horse of the Year' at the 53rd Eclipse Awards

The 53rd Eclipse Awards, taking place in Palm Beach, Florida, saw a fairy-tale end to one of horse racing’s most heartwarming stories in recent years. Cody’s Wish, the retired six-year-old horse, was named the horse of the year and also received the award for the older dirt male.

The story behind Cody’s Wish being named ‘Cody’s Wish’ is a rather teary one. Cody Dorman, a teenager with Wolf-Hirschhorn syndrome, met the horse during a Make-a-Wish event at Gainesborough Farm in Versailles, Kentucky.

Dorman could not walk or communicate on his own, and there was a lot of concern before the two met. The horse had never seen a wheelchair before, and how he would react to Dorman being in one remained a mystery. However, Cody’s Wish gently placed its head in Dorman’s lap, taking everyone by surprise. The suggestion to name the horse "Cody's Wish" arose after this encounter.

Over time, Dorman and Cody’s Wish got closer. The horse seemed to remember him every time they met, and every encounter made their bond stronger.

Cody Dorman was present at two important events - when Cody’s Wish bagged victory at the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile in 2022, and last year when Cody’s Wish won the Dirt Mile again in an incredibly close photo finish.

On both occasions, the horse greeted Dorman by walking over and gently nuzzling him. Unfortunately, 17-year-old Cody Dorman passed away on the flight from Los Angeles to Kentucky, the day after watching the horse win the Dirt Mile.

After Cody’s Wish received the horse of the year award, Cody Dorman’s father, Kelly Dorman, said,

“You’ll never hear Tom Hanks say there is no crying in horse racing. I never would have dreamed five years ago when all this happened that I would be standing right here doing this. I want to thank Cody’s Wish for everything he’s done. I know everyone here; you guys just blow me away, because I know you put your heart in these horses, day in and day out; it’s your life.”

He left a lot of people teary-eyed by adding,

“And I know a lot of times those horses put their heart into you... That horse sure put his heart into us.”

Cody’s Wish will now start a new chapter in his life by starting a stallion career at Darley in Lexington, Ky. He has won 11 of the 16 races he has raced and four of the five he raced in last year.

Other winners at the 53rd Eclipse Awards:

The National Thoroughbred Racing Assn., Daily Racing Form, and the National Turf Writers and Broadcasters, a group of journalists, act as the jury and vote for the winners of the Eclipse Awards.

Idiomatic, the horse who won eight out of nine races last year, won the title in the older dirt female category. She also placed third in the horse of the year category, behind Cody’s Wish and White Abarrio.

The sprinting categories saw Goodnight Olive take the top prize in the female division. She won the Filly and Mare Sprint last year. Elite Power, who won the Breeders’ Cup Sprint, won in the male category. Inspiral, the filly who won the Breeders’ Cup Filly & Turf, took the female turf horse award, while Up to the Mark took the award in the male category.

Just FYI won the Eclipse for 2-year-old filly, while Kentucky Oaks took the honor in the 3-year-old filly category. Jenna Antonucci, the first female conditioner to win a Triple Crown, saw her colt, Arcangelo, take the Eclipse for the 3-year-old male.

The human categories saw Godolphin win awards in both the owner's and breeder's categories. Irad Ortiz Jr. won the jockey award, while Bill Mott was the top trainer.