AGAINST ALL ODDS STATUE
By: Tom Ferry
What is most compelling is not the statue, but rather what it represents. The fighting spirit of community and the warrior hearts of two racehorses. It is a place where one can stop and remember, or simply imagine.
Five-time Kentucky Derby winning trainer D. Wayne Lukas once said if someone has never been to a racetrack before, their maiden voyage should be to Arlington International Racecourse. Each year, from the first Friday in May until the leaves begin to show traces of burnt orange in late September, this majestic racetrack located 30 miles northwest of Chicago plays host to trainers, jockeys and horses from across the Midwest and throughout the racing world. It is a track with a grand history and if one were asked to describe Arlington’s past and present with one word, the answer would be perseverance.
The bronze statue is hard to miss for anyone entering the racecourse as it sits on a balcony overlooking a beautiful paddock. Named Against All Odds, the sculpture was designed by internationally renowned equine artist Edwin Bogucki who also created the bronze Secretariat statue at the Kentucky Horse Park. Unveiled in 1989, Against All Odds captures one of the great moments in Thoroughbred horse racing history. Eight years earlier, Arlington Park introduced the first $1,000,000 Thoroughbred race. The race has had different names over 27 years but today is known as The Arlington Million. It is run each August and gathers some of the world’s great turf stars during the annual International Festival of Racing.
The inaugural race on August 30, 1981 was broadcast on NBC to an estimated TV audience of more than 50 million. The richest race in history needed a great horse and it got one in the incomparable 6-year-old gelding John Henry while also introducing us to a little-known Irish 5-year-old named The Bart.
John Henry struggled early on in the race with a rain-soaked turf, falling back to eighth. At the half mile, however, he found his footing and began to move up along the rail with a rhythmic stride as Key to Content and 40-1 long-shot The Bart battled for the lead. As the field of 12 hit the top of the stretch, the crowd of 30,637 roared as John Henry made his move as he and jockey Bill Shoemaker exploded down the middle of the track in full pursuit of now front-runner The Bart. John Henry closed the gap with each stride and finally caught his opponent at the wire but the end result was too close to call.
To most, it appeared The Bart had won by a narrow margin. The photo finish sign remained up for six minutes and when at last the board flashed the official results, the never-say-die John Henry had done it again in seemingly impossible fashion. With incredibly meticulous detail, the statue captures this final moment with jockey Eddie Delahoussaye aboard The Bart and Shoemaker on John Henry. The life-like monument includes names on the saddle cloths and a look of determination, heart and soul in the eyes of both horses and jockeys alike. Upon completion of the maiden Arlington Millions, the future of the new and exciting turf race looked extremely bright. But everything changed four years later in the very early morning hours of July 31, 1985.
Richard L. Duchossois received the phone call sometime after midnight telling him his racetrack was on fire. Arlington’s majority owner stood in Arlington’s parking lot around 4 am and watched helplessly as the biggest fire the Chicago’s modern suburbs had ever seen to that point blazed out of control. Ultimately, more than 4,000 gallons of water per minute were used to combat the fire but it just wasn’t enough. Duchossois later said he wasn’t concerned about saving the facility because it was beyond saving.
The 5th running of the Arlington Million was 25 days away.
In World War II, Duchossois commanded a tank battalion and on September 15, 1944, he was shot in the side as his battalion crossed the Moselle River. The bullet cased nerve damage to his back and he was temporarily paralyzed from the neck down. His body was placed in a grouping of soldiers marked for dead, yet he was rescued and recovered. Four months later, he was hit in the face with a fragment of a grenade, yet rebounded once more. He received the Purple Heart for his injuries and his war experience taught him the power of teamwork, camaraderie, and … resilience.
The day after the fire, Duchossois, Sheldon Robbins and the other owners mobilized and came up with a plan to remove the smoldering rubble and prepare the track for the Arlington Million. On August 5, 1985, more than 200 crews worked practically around the clock, 20 hours a day, removing 7,000 tons of steel and 14,000 tons of other debris left behind by the fire. A 271,000-square foot area of new blacktop was created and on it was erected 43 red and white tents and temporary bleachers. Those who believed refused to say die and on August 25, “The Miracle Million” was run in front of a crowd of 35,651. Work began immediately afterwards on rebuilding the track. Four years later in 1989, the work was completed and one of the most spectacular racing venues in the world was unveiled.
The Against All Odds statue is symbolic of the track’s 91 years. Perhaps a plaque alongside the statue says it best — “During its entire history, Arlington International Racecourse displayed the desire, the courage and the ability to transform adversity into success.”