Barbadian Patrick Husbands rode a triple at Woodbine to extend his lead at the top of the jockeys’ standings at the celebrated Toronto Oval in Canada on May 12, 2012.

Patrick Husbands was born on May 22, 1973, in Bridgetown, Barbados, and currently lives in Brampton, Ontario. He comes from a racing family and his father, Walter, was a jockey. One of his brothers, Anthony, is a former Woodbine rider and outrider and another brother, Simon, also rides at Woodbine. He started breezing horses at age 7 and won the prestigious Cockspur Cup in Barbados at age 16 aboard Vardar.

Husbands moved to Woodbine in 1994 and won 12 races that first year, then 50 in 1995, and won his first stakes race there in 1998. He continued to improve and won his first of seven total Sovereign Award as Canada’s top jockey in 1999. He has won most of Woodbine’s major stakes at least once and took the Canadian Triple Crown – the Queen’s Plate, Prince of Wales, and Breeders’ Stakes – aboard Wando in 2003. He also won the Triple Tiara for fillies in 2007 aboard Sealy Hill, who also finished second with Husbands aboard in the 2008 Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Turf.

Husbands became a Canadian citizen in 2000. He was honoured in his native Barbados for his 2003 Triple Crown victory, highlighted by ‘Patrick Husbands Day’ at the Garrison Savannah racetrack on January 3, 2004. The Barbados government awarded Husbands the Barbados Service Star (BSS) in the country’s Independence Day honours’ list. He also took part in the second annual Barbados Jockey’s Challenge on New Year’s Day, 2005, helping the home team defeat Team England 76-65 in the three-race event.

For more information, see http://horseracing.about.com/od/jockeys/p/aahusbands.htm and http://www.nationnews.com/articles/view/husbands-in-the-big-money/