TORONTO — Veteran driver Chris Christoforou, thoroughbred builder R. Glenn Sikura and horses Bulldog Hanover and Pink Lloyd top the eight inductees named for enshrinement into the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame on Wednesday.
The other standardbred inductees include Dr. Lloyd S. McKibbin DVM (builder) and Pure Ivory (female horse). Joining Pink Lloyd and Sikura on the thoroughbred side are jockey Irwin Driedger and Formal Gold (veteran).
The eight will be enshrined in August, along with the 2022 class that was unveiled last October.
Christoforou, of Campbellville, Ont., began driving standardbred horses in 1990 and continues today. In 1993 at age 21, Christoforou became the second-youngest driver to win a Breeders Crown race when he guided Earl to victory in the Open Trot division.
Christoforou has recorded 6,758 career wins and nearly $119 million in earnings. He has received the O’Brien Award as Canada’s top driver four times.
Bulldog Hanover retired from racing following the 2022 season with a career record of 28-4-1 over 37 starts and earnings of $2,789,271. After setting a world record earlier last year, Bulldog Hanover finished with a resounding victory in the $810,000 Open Pace to conclude the US$6.7-million Breeders Crown at Woodbine Mohawk Park.
Bulldog Hanover, driven by New Zealand’s Dexter Dunn, posted a stakes-record time of 1:46.4 that also tied the Canadian and track marks. Before the 2022 season, Bulldog Hanover bred a limited number of mares and continues his breeding career at Seelster Farm.
Sikura, the owner/operator of Hill ‘n’ Dale Fames Sales Agency, has contributed to Canadian thoroughbred racing as a breeder, owner and sales agent. He has also served as chief steward of the Jockey Club of Canada since 2018 and is the past president of the National and Ontario Divisions of the CTHS, to name but a few of his other duties.
He becomes the third member of his family to be named for induction joining his father, John Skura Jr. (2013) and brother John G. Sikura (2018).
Pink Lloyd, an Ontario-bred gelding, didn’t race until he was a four-year-old but would win 29-of-38 starts and earn $2.4 million under the guidance of Hall of Fame trainer Robert Tiller. He was Canada’s horse of the year in 2017, its champion male sprinter (2017-21) and twice the champion older male (2017, ’19) before retiring after the 2021 campaign.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 26, 2023.
