Horse Trainer Whittingham Dies

Hall of Fame horse trainer Charlie Whittingham, who prepared Kentucky Derby winners Ferdinand and Sunday Silence, died today. He was 86.

The three-time Eclipse Award winner who was suffering from leukemia was taken from his home in Sierra Madre by ambulance to Saint Luke Medical Center at 6:30 a.m., and died about 8:30 a.m., said his wife, Peggy.

"We had a birthday party for him last week. And he was able to go to the races on Sunday, when he had two horses running," Mrs. Whittingham said.

"The doctor told me that sometimes when you get an infection like leukemia, the system just can't fight it. He was having trouble breathing this morning and I called the Sierra Madre ambulance people."

Ferdinand won the Kentucky Derby in 1986, with jockey Bill Shoemaker, and the Breeders' Cup Classic in 1987.

Sunday Silence won the Kentucky Derby in 1989 when Whittingham was 76, and went on to win the Preakness and Breeders' Cup Classic that same year.

Whittingham trained 11 national champions starting with Ack Ack in 1971 and followed by Porterhouse, Turkish Trousers, Cougar II, Perrault, Estrapade, Ferdinand, Sunday Silence, Miss Alleged and Flawlessly, which won twice, in 1992-93.

Whittingham, born April 13, 1913, in San Diego, was inducted into racing's Hall of Fame in 1974. He was the leading trainer in career victories at Santa Anita with 868, including 204 stakes events.

Whittingham first was taken ill last October when he missed a few days at Santa Anita near his home for what was described as pneumonia.

Whittingham's son and fellow trainer, Michael, had taken over most of the work of the Whittingham barn at Santa Anita in recent months. When word of his death reached the Santa Anita stables this morning, a moment of silence was observed for Whittingham, a trainer at California tracks for 62 years.

More than 200 of Wittingham's stakes victories came with Shoemaker riding.

Wittingham's career was marked by constant achievements, including Eclipse Awards in 1971, 1982 and 1989.

He held the national earnings title seven times, from 1970-73, 1975, and 1981-82.

In 1986 he had a career-high 95 victories. His top earnings year was 1989 $11.4 million. More than 20 of the horses he trained had career earnings over $1 million.

Wittingham was also the all-time leading trainer at both Santa Anita and Hollywood Park.

On Feb. 9, 1987, he became one of only five trainers to win four races in a single day at Santa Anita.

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