Kentucky Derby

The Kentucky Derby (/ˈdɜːrbi/) is an American Grade I stakes race run at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. The race is run by three-year-old Thoroughbreds at a distance of 1+1⁄4 miles (10 furlongs; 2,012 metres), the first time horses in the field race that distance. Colts and geldings carry 126 pounds (57 kilograms) and fillies 121 pounds (55 kilograms).

Held annually on the first Saturday in May, the race is the first leg of the Triple Crown. The Derby is known as "The Run for the Roses", as the winning horse is draped in a blanket of roses. Lasting approximately two minutes, the race has also been called "The Most Exciting Two Minutes in Sports" or "The Fastest Two Minutes in Sports". It is preceded by the two-week-long Kentucky Derby Festival.

The race was first run in 1875. Unlike the other races of the Triple Crown, the Preakness Stakes and the Belmont Stakes, the Kentucky Derby, along with its sibling race, the Kentucky Oaks, has been run annually since its first edition. They were twice rescheduled within the same year, the first time due to World War II in 1945, and the second time due to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. Further, the Derby and the Oaks are the oldest continuously held major sporting events in the US, as well as the oldest thoroughbred stakes races held in the same location since their beginning.

The Derby is the most-watched and most-attended horse race in the United States. The 2024 Kentucky Derby marks the 150th running of the race.