Horse racing is one of the oldest sports on the planet with years of tradition which brings us some of the most amazing stories. With that said, it is expected to see a lot of true story horse racing movies on the big screen.
Unfortunately, not many movies are made highlighting some of the important events in horse racing history. However, the stories that came wrapped in a form of a movie based on true horse racing events are true jewels. One of which is the movie called Seabiscuit which is a motivational horse racing movie about an underdog that climbs the ladder of success.
Who doesn’t love a good underdog movie, where all things are against your odds and the character still manages to succeed? So, is the movie Seabiscuit based on a true story or is it made up?
About Seabiscuit
Seabiscuit is one of the biggest horse racing films ever made in Hollywood. It came in 2003 and it is based on a success story of a racehorse named ‘Seabiscuit’ that managed to succeed in the competitive world of horse racing.
The movie is directed by Gary Ross, and it is based on a 1999 non-fiction book called ‘Seabiscuit: An American Legend by Laura Hillenbrand.
This was also one of the first horse racing movies ever to get nominated for seven Oscars at the time.
Is Seabiscuit Based on a Real Story?
According to various reports, Seabiscuit is indeed based on a true story that managed to survive over the years. Seabiscuit was a horse that most people would think that it is unfit for the big and competitive horse racing world. You can read 10 interesting facts about Seabiscuit horse by TwinSpires sportsbook here!
The horse was rather small and didn’t have the characteristics of a racehorse. However, Charles Howard seemed to think differently when he first saw Seabiscuit and decided to give the horse a chance.
At the beginning of Seabiscuit’s career, the horse managed to participate in 35 races at only 2-years-old. When nobody believed in the horse, Seabiscuit managed to get five wins and seven second-place finishers.
What’s Real in the Seabiscuit the Movie?
After a rather successful start in the horse racing world, Seabiscuit’s glory didn’t survive for long. In fact, after inadequate performance even when the horse was in the hands of an acclimated trainer called James Fitzsimmons, Seabiscuit was finally banished from the horse racing community.
Still, that wasn’t the end of the Seabiscuit racing career. Fate seems to be giving Seabiscuit a chance to re-enter the horse racing world, after being bought by Charles Howard. He was a rich car salesman that managed to buy the horse for $8,000.
He then gave Tom Smith, who was a trainer known for his unorthodox training methods, a chance to make Seabiscuit a horse racing champion.
This was the first time that a trainer understood something extraordinary about Seabiscuit. The trainer managed to push Seabiscuit to its limits unveiling its full potential. Seabiscuit alongside the help of the new rider Red Pollard managed to get back in shape and win many races such as the Scarsdale Handicap, World’s Fair Handicap, and Bay Bridge Handicap.
After Seabiscuit’s winning streak, its popularity significantly increased. The horse was also selected for the ultimate race with War Admiral. This was the ultimate race called “Match of the Century” where 40,000 people came to Baltimore’s Pimlico Race Course to witness this incredible horse racing action.
Even though Pollard was injured and the incredible bond with Seabiscuit was broken and replaced by George Woolf, the horse still managed to impress the audience. According to the movie and other reports, Seabiscuit delivered an unforgettable performance and dominated the race by four lengths even though he was racing head-to-head with the best racehorse at that time.
In 1938, Seabiscuit managed to win his rightful “Horse of Year Title” and some reports suggest that the horse made over $400,000 in career earnings.
