Diane Crump, Trailblazing Jockey, Passes Away at 77
WASHINGTON — Diane Crump, who made history as the first female professional horse racing jockey in 1969, and the first woman to compete in the Kentucky Derby just a year later, has died at 77. Her daughter, Della Payne, shared that Crump passed away Thursday night in hospice care in Winchester, Virginia, after being diagnosed with a serious brain tumor last October.
Nearly three decades after her groundbreaking race at Hialeah Park in Florida on February 7, 1969, Crump had won a total of 228 races before retiring in 1998, just shy of her 50th birthday.
Crump was among several women in her time striving for jockey licenses, but often faced hurdles due to the need for supportive trainers willing to race them. There were instances where male jockeys threatened boycotts if women participated, which complicated things further.
A photo from Hialeah shows Crump heading to the tracks, flanked by security, as fans crowded around. In his biography, *Diane Crump: The Life in the Saddle of a Horse Racing Pioneer,* Mark Schrager notes that six of the twelve jockeys originally signed up for the race refused to ride against her. Notably, among these were future legends like Angel Cordero Jr. and Jorge Velasquez.
As the others stepped in and the horses prepared to race, the traditional call to post was replaced with the song “Smile for Me, My Diane.” Crump finished 10th in that race on a horse named Bridle and Bit, which was quite the achievement to break through that barrier. Just a month later, she secured her first victory at Gulfstream Park.
In 1970, she again made headlines by becoming the first woman to ride in the Kentucky Derby. While she did win the day’s first race at Churchill Downs, her horse finished 15th out of 17 in the Derby, called Fathom. After her, it would take another 14 years for a female jockey to compete in the Derby, a clear indication of the uphill battles faced.
Mike Anderson, President of Churchill Downs, expressed in a statement that Crump “will forever be revered and fondly remembered in the lore of horse racing.” He noted her lifelong passion for horses, which she pursued since she was five, describing her as “an iconic pioneer who realized her childhood dreams.”
Chris Goodlett from the Kentucky Derby Museum emphasized that Crump’s legacy stands for “courage, grit, and progress,” stating her determination paved the way for countless female jockeys and inspired many beyond the world of racing.
After retiring from her racing career, Crump moved to Virginia to start a business related to buying and selling horses. In her later years, she took therapy dogs—specifically dachshunds—into hospitals, where she visited patients, some of whom had ongoing health issues, for years.
Payne mentioned that once her mother entered an assisted living facility, she quickly became “semi-famous” among staff due to her frequent visits there, with doctors and nurses often stopping by to see her. One of her final visitors was the person who mowed her lawn.
Payne remarked that her mother was relentless in pursuing her goals, whether it was her journey as a jockey or her efforts to help others. “I wouldn’t say she was competitive; she was just stubborn,” she reflected. “She could never let someone down if they were counting on her.”
As a personal touch, Crump’s philosophy was captured in tattoos on her forearms—”Kindness” on one side and “Compassion” on the other.
Diane Crump will be cremated, and her ashes will be interred between her parents at Prospect Hill Cemetery in Front Royal, Virginia.
