Queen Elizabeth II attends 133rd Derby
USA Today
By Bruce Schreiner (AP)
LOUISVILLE “” Queen Elizabeth II, a horse enthusiast, got her first look Saturday at Churchill Downs, a racing icon best known for its twin spires and hospitality on Derby Day when mint juleps flow and fancy hats are in fashion.
The queen and her husband, Prince Philip, arrived a little more than two hours before the 133rd running of the Kentucky Derby, the first leg of thoroughbred racing’s Triple Crown, and went immediately to a private suite. The royal couple had traveled to Kentucky from Virginia on Friday, landing in Lexington, 70 miles to the east…
For fans with no chance of getting an up-close glimpse of the queen, there was an alternative. A Queen Elizabeth impersonator drew long lines in the track’s paddock area.
For a distinctive Kentucky flair, she posed with a look-alike of Colonel Harland Sanders, founder of the Kentucky Fried Chicken chain.
Judith Gindy of Miami, the impersonator who refers to herself as Queen Elizabeth Too, admitted to being a great admirer. “I’m very excited. It’s my dream to meet her,” Gindy said…
The royal couple’s visit to the track is part of a six-day trip to the United States that also includes visits to Virginia and Washington.