Harness
Pacing superstars added to WA Racing Hall of Fame
The first WA-owned horse to win harness racing’s prized Inter Dominion title and the pacer who helped turn his driver into a superstar of the code have been revealed as the latest inductees into the WA Racing Hall of Fame.
The Frank Kersley-trained Tennessee Sky, who won the Inter Dominion in South Australia in 1954, will be inducted alongside former winning machine The Falcon Strike, whose big-race record helped launch the driving career of Hall of Famer, Gary Hall Jr.
Hall Jr said driving The Falcon Strike, who won three WA Pacing Cups, allowed him to hone the sublime driving skills he used to take WA harness racing icon I'm Themightyquinn to three Inter Dominion wins. His first big race win was behind The Falcon Strike in the 2002 Fremantle Cup.
"He put me on the map," said Hall Jr, who was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2019 at the age of just 36.
"If I hadn't have had Falcon before I had Quinny, Quinny might not have won the number of big races he did. He taught me so much about how to perform in the big races and mainly because he was so tough.
"I could drive him with confidence and even if I made a little error along the way, he was good enough and tough enough to pull his way out of it.
He just had an amazing will to win like all the good, tough ones - he just loved competing and loved winning.
"He knew he was pretty good and he was a massive stepping stone for my career. I'm really happy to see him go into the Hall of Fame."
The Falcon Strike won in 41 of his 78 race starts and collected more than $1.22 million in prizemoney.
NSW-bred Tennessee Sky was owned by prominent WA harness racing identity Eddie Nevard when he won the 1954 Inter Dominion championship in front of a crowd of 47,000 people. The 1950 NSW Derby winner had already run in consecutive Inter Dominion finals in the previous two years in Sydney and Perth, respectively.
During his racing career, Tennessee Sky won 12 races at Gloucester Park and another 10 at Sydney's Harold Park headquarters. He finished second to champion New Zealand mare Blue Mist in the 1953 Inter Dominion final in Perth.
Nevard's son Peter said he still had Tennessee Sky's 1954 Inter Dominion trophy and his father's racing silks at his home in Perth's southern suburbs. He said it was a special moment to see his father, who died aged just 59 in 1967, and his champion horse recognised in the Hall of Fame so many years after his crowning Inter Dominion moment.
Treasured mementos: The 1954 Inter Dominion gold cup trophy and racing silks
"It's quite exciting for us," he said. "The horses meant a lot to Dad, and it brings back some nice memories."
Peter laughed about the fact he had been made to take the Inter Dominion gold cup trophy several years ago by the bank where his father had it stored.
Racing and Wagering Western Australia Chief Executive Officer Ian Edwards said the exceptional racing feats of Tennessee Sky and The Falcon Strike had made them locks for the Hall of Fame.
"You only have to look at the significant races the two pacers won to realise they deserve this coveted place in harness racing history," Edwards said.
"It is important that we continue to honour those people and racing animals who have helped pave the way for the industry we all enjoy today and this pair of star pacers sit comfortably in that category."
Tennessee Sky and The Falcon Strike will be officially inducted into the WA Racing Hall of Fame at a gala function at The Westin Perth on March 21.
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