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Meet Alex Solis

The Best Friend

Alex Solis

The Best Friend

Meet the Jockeys

Alex's Stats
Height: 5'3"
Weight: 112 lbs.
Born: March 25, 1964; Panama City, Panama
Residence: Glendora, CA
Family: Wife Sheila (daughter of trainer J.B. Sonnier); children Alex Jr., Andrew, Austin and Tiffany

With more than 4,000 trips to the winner's circle and boasting more than a dozen racing titles in California, Alex Solis is a rider known for his perfect form on a horse and extreme physical fitness. Solis began his 25-year career in his home country of Panama but quickly made the leap to the United States racing circuit to seek his fortune.

Solis was interested in horse racing from the time he was a boy when he attended races with his father in Panama. At the age of 14, he enrolled in the Panama Jockey School where he learned the basics of horseracing, graduating from the school in 1981. Two years later, Solis won his first race at Presidente Remon, Panama before moving to Florida in 1982 to continue his apprenticeship and try his hand on the American circuits.

After a short stay in Florida, where he became leading rider on the Gulfstream, Hialeah and Calder circuits, Solis moved to Southern California in 1985. Subsequently, his career as a jockey took off when he won the Preakness in 1986 aboard Snow Chief. In 1991, Solis had three consecutive third place finishes in the Kentucky Derby, Preakness and Belmont Stakes. He has finished second in the Kentucky Derby three out of the four times.

In 2003, Solis won the Dubai World Cup, three Breeders' Cup races and registered his 4,000th win aboard King Robyn in Santa Anita. Soon after, in 2004, he suffered from broken vertebrae and three broken ribs when he fell while riding, leaving him out of commission for seven months. However, his injury did not deter him from getting back into racing, and Solis is still going strong after 25 years.

In 1997, Solis was the recipient of the prestigious George Woolf Memorial Jockey Award, and in 2006, he was honored at the Sports Legends Awards for his impact on the sport. As Solis' career winds toward retirement, there are still racing achievements he is looking to attain, including a win at the Kentucky Derby and a spot in the Hall of Fame.

In his spare time, Solis has taken on a new challenge away from the track — he's created a private wine label with fellow jockey Mike Smith that they are managing together.