In June 1923 at Belmont Park, 22-year-old jockey Frank Hayes achieved one of horse racing’s strangest outcomes.
Riding a 20-to-1 long shot named Sweet Kiss in a steeplechase, Hayes suffered a fatal heart attack near the end of the race. Even so, his body remained in the saddle as Sweet Kiss cleared the final fence and crossed the finish line first, winning by a head. Officials declared the result, making Hayes the first recorded deceased jockey to win a race.
Hayes’s posthumous victory remains a singular moment in racing history.