Cherie DeVaux earns TIME100 Sports honor after historic Triple Crown season

Cherie DeVaux’s rapid rise from breakthrough trainer to major-race force has now been stamped by TIME, which put her on its inaugural TIME100 Sports list in the Titans category. The honor lands because of what happened on the track: Golden Tempo delivered a Derby shocker at Churchill Downs and then came back five weeks later to win the Belmont Stakes, turning one horse into the centerpiece of the season and DeVaux into one of racing’s most visible names.

TIME unveiled the first-ever sports-only extension of its annual Most Influential People franchise on Tuesday, June 9, 2026, describing the list as a group of the 100 most influential figures shaping the global sports landscape. DeVaux’s profile singled out the achievement that made her stand out immediately, calling her the first female trainer to win the Kentucky Derby. It also noted that Golden Tempo won again in the Belmont Stakes in June, a second classic score that hardened the impression that this was no fluke, no sentimental storyline, but a trainer-horse combination that has changed the conversation in Thoroughbred racing.

The Derby win carried extra weight because of how it came. West Point Thoroughbreds says Golden Tempo won at 23-to-1 odds, rallying from last to take the Run for the Roses and announce DeVaux on the sport’s biggest stage. Five weeks later, Golden Tempo captured the Belmont Stakes at Saratoga Race Course, extending a campaign that has already become one of the defining runs of the 2026 season. TIME’s profile also quoted DeVaux after the Derby: “I’m glad I can be a representative of all women, everywhere. We can do anything we set our minds to.” The publication showed her in the winner’s circle, including alongside her stepdaughter, underscoring how personal the moment was as well as historic.

The recognition matters because it changes how the rest of the sport sees her. Owners notice when a trainer handles pressure at Churchill Downs and Saratoga Springs, New York, and bettors pay attention when a 23-to-1 Derby winner proves it was no one-off. TIME’s profile places DeVaux in a broader sports conversation that now includes business leaders, media figures and athletes, while the first TIME100 Sports gala is scheduled for July 16, 2026, in New York City. For horse racing, the bigger signal is simple: DeVaux is no longer just emerging. She has arrived at the top table, and she got there by winning the races that matter most.