How does Richard Moreau celebrate winning an unprecedented sixth straight O'Brien Award as Canada's Trainer of the Year?
He takes a vacation. A well-deserved vacation, "down south with the family."
Moreau won his sixth consecutive title as Canada’s Trainer of the Year. He put up some incredible numbers in the 2018 season, posting personal highs in starts (1,697), wins (315) and purses ($4.6 million). He was the leading trainer in both wins and earnings at Woodbine Racetrack’s final meet and at Woodbine Mohawk Park.
Moreau trained O’Brien Award winner Jimmy Freight for part of the sophomore season including his victories in the Ontario Sires Stakes and Somebeachsomewhere. Other top performers from the Moreau Stable in 2018 included pacing colt Backstreet Shadow, trotting horse Big Rich, and pacing mare Witch Dali.
In his acceptance interview on Saturday night, Moreau was quick to credit the team behind the scenes -- mainly composed of roughly a dozen full-time staff -- for the stable's consistency and high-level success.
"We've been working years over years," noted Moreau. "We've been to Montreal, Ottawa...most have moved to Toronto but it's always the same staff. I show my respect to them and I get it back times ten."
Moreau also discusses his award-winning sophomore pacer Jimmy Freight, his personal highlights of the past year and what he looks forward to in 2019 in this post-event interview.
This is the second in a series of several post-event video interviews with O'Brien Award finalists, sponsored by Horse Racing Alberta.
On Saturday, February 2, Standardbred Canada announced the winners for the 2018 O’Brien Awards, at the 30th edition of the annual O’Brien Awards Black Tie Gala held at the Hilton Mississauga / Meadowvale hotel in Mississauga, Ont. The O’Brien Awards honour Canada’s best in harness racing over the past season and are named in honour of the late Joe O’Brien, an outstanding horseman and member of the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame. To view the full list of 2018 O'Brien Award winners, click here.