Del W. Carroll
Delmer W. "Del" Carroll (October 30, 1919 - May 9, 1982) was an American champion polo player, Thoroughbred racehorse owner/trainer, and soldier during World War II.[1]
Biography
Del Carroll had begun riding horses as a boy of ten which as a young man led to choosing to serve in the cavalry in the United States Army during World War II. He rose to the rank of First Lieutenant. According to a 1945 Pennsylvania Military College article, he "was a member of the mechanized cavalry group that did the dangerous advance scouting during the German campaign."
Carroll's knowledge of horses led to his participation in the game of polo. One of the top twenty-five players in the world during the 1950s and 1960s, he became an eight-goal handicap player. He remained active in the game throughout his life and at the time of his death at age sixty-two still had a four-goal handicap. His interest in horses also led to a career as a professional horse trainer, conditioning Thoroughbreds for friends and fellow polo players, William S. Farish III and Michael Grace Phipps.
1972 Preakness Stakes
Del Carroll had four horses run in the Kentucky Derby with his best result a fifth in 1966 with Blue Grass Stakes winner, Abe's Hope. He had had a sixth-place finish in the 1969 Preakness Stakes but on May 29, 1972 he earned the most important win of his career. In that year's Preakness Stakes, run on a sloppy Pimlico Race Course, Carroll's colt Bee Bee Bee took victory in the prestigious U.S. Triple Crown race.
During his career, Del Carroll won three training titles at Keeneland Race Course, one at Oaklawn Park Race Track, and was one of the top trainers at Arlington Park in Chicago where he won 262 career races.
Alone in the early morning of May 5, 1982 Del Carroll was galloping one of his horses on the Keeneland track when he was thrown by the horse and suffered severe head injuries. He underwent surgery at St. Joseph's Hospital in Lexington but died four days later.
Legacy
His son, Del Carroll II, who was his assistant from 1970 through 1979, is now a trainer at tracks on the East Coast of the United States.
His daughter, Robin Ann Carroll, who grew up with her father on the race track, is now the owner of Magazin Farms (www.magazinfarms.com) and an established thoroughbred breeder in the sport of polo. Her son, Del Carroll Walton is an established polo player and horseman himself.
His youngest daughter, Larkspur Carroll, studied Veterinary Medicine at Ohio State University, became a doctor of vet medicine, is a practice owner/member at CORE Therapies - The Veterinary Acupuncture and Chiropractic Clinic. She is also the mother to Aurea, Del W. Carroll's granddaughter.
References
- His first name is also spelled as "Delmar" by various entities such as Churchill Downs , the Museum of Polo and Hall of Fame Archived 2007-10-18 at the Wayback Machine and the Social Security Death Index. The NYRA and the NTRA both spell his son's name as Delmer W. Carroll II.