Ron Turcotte, the jockey who rode the legendary Secretariat to the Triple Crown in 1973 and won more than 3,000 races over his two-decade career, died Friday morning of natural causes at his home in Canada, per the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame. He was 84.

Turcotte began his career as a jockey in the 1960s and gained national recognition when he triumphed in the 1965 Preakness Stakes aboard Tom Rolfe. However, he gained unparalleled fame in 1972, winning the Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes while riding for Riva Ridge. He then took the reins of Secretariat, achieving fame and remarkable victories at esteemed tracks leading into the historic 1973 Triple Crown.

Secretariat not only clinched the Triple Crown but also set speed records in all three races, famously winning the Belmont Stakes by an astounding 31 lengths. Turcotte’s exceptional ride and the iconic photograph of him looking back at the trailing runners captured the essence of that legendary race.

“Ron Turcotte, legendary jockey of Secretariat has left us at the age of 84. Among many other things, he provided us with one of the most compelling photographs in sports history, quoted as saying ‘I had to take a look back, and when I turned around, I scared myself.’ Rest easy.” — Darin Zoccali (@atTheTrack7) August 22, 2025

“I was amazed with that horse all along,” Turcotte wrote of Secretariat in 2023. “He was doing something you’d never see before and will probably never see again. He was a type of horse you’ll never see again.”

By the end of Secretariat’s Triple Crown performance, Turcotte had made history as the first jockey to win the Kentucky Derby in consecutive years since 1902 and became the first jockey to win five out of six consecutive Triple Crown races—a feat later matched by Victor Espinoza in 2015.

Turcotte continued to be Secretariat’s jockey until his final race in October 1973, after which Eddie Maple took over. He rode until 1978, when a fall resulted in career-ending injuries that left him paralyzed from the waist down, concluding a remarkable career with 3,032 victories.

In 1979, Turcotte earned induction into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame. In 1983, he was awarded the Avelino Gomez Memorial Award for Canadian jockeys and became the first figure in thoroughbred racing to receive the Order of Canada.

“The world may remember Ron as the famous jockey of Secretariat, but to us, he was a wonderful husband, a loving father, grandfather, and a great horseman,” the Turcotte family shared in a statement through his longtime business partner Leonard Lusky.

At the time of his passing, Turcotte was the last remaining member of Secretariat’s connections; notable figures like Secretariat’s breeder Christopher Chenery and his owner Penny Chenery had both passed away prior.