Cash Asmussen
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Cash Asmussen (born March 15, 1962 in Agar, South Dakota) is an American thoroughbred horse racing jockey. Born Brian Keith Asmussen, in 1977 he legally changed his name to "Cash". From a Texas horse racing family, his parents operate a ranch in El Paso and his brother Steve is a successful horse trainer.
Asmussen scored his first important graded stakes race win at the Beldame Stakes in 1979 and went on to win that years Eclipse Award as best apprentice jockey. In 1981 he won the Coaching Club American Oaks at Belmont Park and traveled to Japan where he won the Japan Cup. The following year he won the Washington, D.C., International and his first of two Turf Classic Invitational Stakes then gained his most success as a jockey racing in France where he went to ride under contract for the wealthy stable owner, Stavros Niarchos.
While based in Chantilly, France, Cash Asmussen also scored victories in a number of important stakes races in England including the 1988 July Cup, 1989 Coronation Stakes, 1990 Coronation Cup, and the 1993 St. James's Palace Stakes. Racing in Ireland he won the 1987 Irish St Leger and the 1988 National Stakes. Asmussen also returned to compete in the U.S. for various major races and won his second "Washington, D.C., International" in 1984 plus the 1988 and 1992 Arlington Million in Chicago. Internationally he also won the 1993 Canadian International Stakes and the 1994 Hong Kong Cup.
The only foreign rider to ever win the French riding title, between 1985 and 1990 Cash Asmussen was the country's Champion jockey every year except for 1987 when he competed in Ireland. In 1991, he rode Suave Dancer to victory in the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe, France's most prestigious race. During his career in France he won numerous other Group 1 races including the:
- Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud – 1988, 1990, 1997, 2000
- Prix du Jockey Club - 1991,1993,
- Poule d'Essai des Poulains (French 2000 Guineas) - 1983, 1986, 1993
- Prix de Diane - 1984, 1994.
- Prix Royal-Oak - 1988
- Poule d'Essai des Pouliches (French 1000 Guineas) - 1993
- Prix Jean Prat - 1985, 1986, 1989, 1992
- Prix d'Ispahan - 1987, 1990
- Grand Prix de Paris - 1989
- Prix Jacques le Marois - 1989, 1992, 1994
- Prix du Moulin de Longchamp - 1984, 1988, 1989, 1993
Cash Asmussen retired from riding in 2001. Over the course of his career, he rode more than 3,000 winners races.
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