The term “dead heat” originates from horse racing, although it is used in many sports as a synonym for a tie. Previously, horses could take part in several races a day, the winner was the horse with the highest result, taking into account all the races of the day. Since the competition between horses is a fairly hot event, the race was called “heat”.
But if there was a tie in one of the races, it was not counted in the overall standings, it was “dead”. Accordingly, “dead heat” was the name for such races that were not included in the overall standings due to the simultaneous finish.
In horse racing, the saying “time is money” is especially relevant. Betting on horses has been popular since the inception of racing, and there has always been a loophole for cheaters to play unfairly and corruptly. Photo finish came to the rescue, which began to be actively used in racing in the 40-50s. Photo finish helps to understand who was first and who was second, there are noticeably fewer ties. But there are cases when high-resolution photo finish cameras cannot separate the finishing horses in time and record the simultaneous crossing of the line by the participants of the competition.
A bit of history
This piquant situation, when several horses (usually two) finish at the same time, was resolved quite simply in the 19th century. If both owners of the winners could agree and split the winnings, and the cash prize is of paramount importance in such cases, then so it was, they parted amicably, each with their half of the money. But if it was not possible to agree, then an additional race was appointed, which revealed the winner.
This happened, for example, in 1874 at the now famous American thoroughbred races of the 1st class Travers Stakes at the Saratoga Race Course, in Saratoga Springs, New York. Two horses, Attila and Acrobat, came to the finish together, creating a “dead heat” situation. On the same day, the second race with the participation of these horses took place, where Attila won. Its owner Pierre J. Lorillard IV, the owner of the oldest tobacco company in the USA, Lorillard Tobacco Company, who was already not poor, received $5050, a huge amount for that time.
The first mention of a photo finish dates back to the end of the 19th century and is associated with horse racing. At that time, an ordinary camera was used to determine the winner. In the May 1882 issue of the journal “Nature”, an article was published by Edward Muybridge, a master of instant photography. He studied the movements of animals and the issues of their recording and believed that his developments could be used in racing to determine the winner in controversial cases.
From the 1930s, tape cameras began to be used at the finish line in races. A photograph was used as the basis for announcing the winner.
When the photo finish began to be used and the practice of additional races was cancelled, in the case of “dead heat” there were two winners of the race. For bettors, this meant that the winning pool was being split, the odds were lower than initially advertised, and the final winnings were lower than expected.
Photo finish determines the winner
The 2005 Japan Cup was a neck-and-neck affair between Frankie Dettori's Alkaased and Christophe Lemaire's Heart's Cry. It was only thanks to a photo finish that it became clear that the country's most prestigious $5 million Cup went to Alkaased, who ran the 2400m course in a record time of 2:22.1.
The fate of the $6 million Melbourne Cup in 2011 was also decided by a photo finish. French stallion Dunaden, British stallion Red Cadeaux and Australian stallion Lucas Cranach all came together at the finish line, where Dunaden and Red Cadeaux pulled ahead in the final metres and crossed the finish line neck-and-neck. The photo finish showed Dunaden was first. The race was tense, with literally the entire country watching its outcome. For example, the question time event in Parliament was moved an hour earlier to make it before the start. The 150th running of the 2024 Kentucky Derby, held on May 4 at Churchill Downs, also went smoothly only thanks to a three-way photo finish. Mystik Dan beat Sierra Leone and the Japanese guest Forever Young, but it took the judges several minutes to figure this out, so small was the winner’s “breakaway”.
Double Dead Heat in North America
On July 5, 1926, the annual Carter Handicap took place at Aqueduct Racetrack in New York City, culminating in a remarkable finish. Both Macaw and Nedana crossed the finish line simultaneously, each clocking in at 1:24.60 over a distance of 7 furlongs. A photo finish confirmed the tie, declaring both horses as winners, with no further races necessary.
The trend of dual victories continued in 1939 during the Churchill Downs Stakes, where Arab's Arrow and Kings Blue also finished at the same time, 1:24.80 over 7 furlongs. Instances of double dead heats are not unusual in North American racing, including harness events. For example, in the 1972 Adios Stakes held at The Meadows, both Jay Time and Strike Out were declared winners.
Even in the 1989 Hambletonian Stakes, Park Avenue Joe and Probe crossed the finish line together; however, the prize was awarded to Park Avenue Joe based on their average performances throughout the season—he placed first and second in two races, while Probe placed first and ninth.
In a remarkable turn of events in 2022, Woodbine Race Course in Ontario witnessed an extraordinary double dead heat on July 2 during the Nassau Stakes (G2). The thoroughbreds Crystal Cliffs, ridden by Rafael Hernandez, and Lady Speightspeare, with Emma-Jane Wilson in the saddle, shared an exhilarating finish, delighting the crowd. This victory marked the 2000th win for trainer Roger Attfield. The competition between these elite jockeys continued on December 4, 2022, at the same racetrack, where Emma-Jane Wilson on Who's the Star and Rafael Hernandez on Wentru found themselves in yet another tie in the Valedictory Stakes (G3). Remarkably, despite Wentru holding the lead for most of the race, Who's the Star surged from tenth place to challenge at the finish line, resulting in yet another photo-finish dead heat.
Triple Dead Heat in North America
While triple dead heats are rare in both thoroughbred and standardbred racing, they generate significant excitement and are long-remembered in the sport. One of the earliest noteworthy instances occurred on June 10, 1944, during the Carter Handicap at Aqueduct Racetrack, where Wait A Bit, Brownie, and Bossuet all finished simultaneously, marking the first recorded triple dead heat in a stakes race.
Another notable occurrence happened on July 3, 1953, at Hollywood Park Racetrack, with Joe's Pleasure, Challenger Tom, and Leaful finishing in a tie. However, the most renowned instance took place in 1997 at the same venue, featuring Cool Miss Ann, Tina Celesta, and Chans Pearl achieving the same feat. The most recent known triple dead heat occurred at Evangeline Downs in Louisiana on April 11, 2014, where Chessie Slew, All In The Art, and Memories Of Trina astonished spectators by finishing at the same moment, as confirmed by photo finish results.
The first recorded triple dead heat in harness racing was on October 3, 1953, at the historic Freehold Raceway, where Patchover, Payne Hall, and Penny Maid all touched the finish line simultaneously, making it impossible to assign a winner based on photo finish evidence. As a result, all three horses were designated as co-winners.
In March 2009, the 25th recorded triple dead heat in the history of harness racing occurred at The Meadows Racetrack, featuring Tsm Goldenridge, Serious Damage, and Teen Elvis. Notably, Timely Topic finished just a half-step behind the winners, nearly making it a quad dead heat, as her nose was only centimetres away from equaling the others.
These rare dead heat events create a lasting impact on both fans and competitors. The exceptional training of the horses and the unmatched skill of the jockeys blur the lines between the best racing talents. They are so evenly matched that modern digital tools sometimes struggle to determine a definitive winner. The future of racing promises to unfold many new and groundbreaking happenings for spectators, who will likely come to accept these thrilling outcomes as part of the sport.