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| Sol Kumin |
The award will be presented at the Thoroughbred Owner Conference at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale Beach, Fla., in January 2016.
Nominees for the New Owner of the Year Award must have owned Thoroughbreds for fewer than three years, have had an interest in a horse at the time it won a stakes race in 2015, and have had a verifiable owner’s license in 2015.
Kumin, a resident of the Boston, Mass., area, purchased his first Thoroughbred in 2014, and his first win came in March 2014 with Madaket Millie at Gulfstream Park for trainer Chad Brown. Approximately one month later, he submitted the winning bid for future Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf winner Lady Eli.
In his short time in the sport, Kumin has helped form six racing partnerships: Beacon Hill Partners, Great Point Stables, Head of Plains Partners, Madaket Stables, Nantucket Thoroughbred Partners, and Sheep Pond.
He now has an ownership interest in more than 65 racehorses, and nine of them competed in the 2015 Breeders’ Cup: Slumber, Ray’s The Bar (GB), Stallwalkin’ Dude, Sharla Rae, Gliding By, Undrafted, Last Waltz (IRE), Dacita (CHI), and Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Sprint winner Wavell Avenue.
Most of his horses are trained by Brown and he also has horses with Richard Baltas, David Jacobson, Bill Mott, Jeff Mullins, Doug O’Neill, Todd Pletcher, Rudy Rodriguez, and Wesley Ward.
Kumin has brought an array of new owners and fans into the game. He has also shown his support for retired Thoroughbreds by donating a percentage of each horse’s Breeders’ Cup earnings this year to New Vocations racehorse adoption program.
“I am honored to be given this award for New Owner of the Year,” Kumin said. “I feel extremely lucky to have been introduced to horse racing at this stage in my life. In a short period of time, I have been fortunate enough to win some races and form some incredible friendships that I know I will have for many years to come.”
Kumin is the CEO and founder of Folger Hill Asset Management. Folger Hill is an equity hedge fund that was launched March 2014. Prior to founding Folger Hill, he spent 10 years with SAC Capital Advisors, most recently as chief operating officer.
The committee that chose Kumin was composed of Price Bell, Reynolds Bell Jr., John Keitt, Kevin Lavin, Stephen Panus, Andy Schweigardt, and Peter Willmott.
The Thoroughbred Owner Conference will be held January 11, 2016, through January 14, 2016, and will feature two days of conference presentations, a welcome reception at Gulfstream Park’s paddock, a gala dinner at Turnberry Isle Resort, a day of racing, and multiple opportunities to network with panelists and industry personnel.
Jim Rome, a prominent Thoroughbred owner and the host of “The Jim Rome Show” on CBS Sports Radio and “Jim Rome On Showtime,” will deliver the keynote address.
The presenting sponsors are Keeneland Association, New York Racing Association, The Stronach Group, and Woodbine Entertainment.
OwnerView is a joint effort spearheaded by The Jockey Club and the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association to encourage ownership of Thoroughbreds and provide accurate information on trainers, public racing syndicates, the process of purchasing and owning a Thoroughbred, racehorse retirement, and owner licensing. More information can be found at ownerview.com.
