America\u2019s Best Racing has launched a monthly series to celebrate women in racing, explore the challenges they face in what has been a male-dominated industry, and highlight their achievements.<\/p>\n
For young people who aspire to make their mark and wonder how to accomplish that, there can be no greater example than Dora Delgado.<\/p>\n
Delgado literally started in the basement with Breeders\u2019 Cup Ltd., working part-time as a data entry and file clerk in the summer of 1983 as the fledgling organization prepared for the inaugural running of the Breeders\u2019 Cup World Championships<\/a> the following year.<\/p>\n A self-described \u201cdoer,\u201d Delgado was quickly promoted to full-time. Her personal growth has paralleled what blossomed into a grand international happening. She now serves as executive vice president and chief racing officer and was instrumental in taking the Breeders\u2019 Cup from seven races worth $10 million on one day to the 14-race, $30 million two-day extravaganza that will occur Oct. 31-Nov. 1 at Del Mar<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cShe\u2019s always been a trailblazer for the Breeders\u2019 Cup,\u201d said Drew Fleming, president and chief executive officer of Breeders\u2019 Cup Ltd. \u201cShe has a constant drive to innovate, which has helped raise the bar of our championships year after year, ensuring that we are at the forefront of global racing.\u201d<\/p>\n Delgado, 60, will never forget the early days, operating out of basement offices in the old BloodHorse building in Lexington, working against a wave of skepticism surrounding breeder John Gaines\u2019 bold and innovative concept.<\/p>\n If a mailing list needed to be formed, she was the one to sit down and type 400 names and addresses. If an advertisement needed to be designed and the budget did not allow for an advertising agency to be hired, she scrambled to find scissors and glue.<\/p>\n \u201cThere was nothing like, \u2018I don\u2019t know how to do that,\u2019 \u201d Delgado said. \u201cIf I didn\u2019t know how to do it, I\u2019d find out how to do it.\u201d<\/p>\n Delgado recalls sitting in the office kitchen and being part of the discussion concerning the naming of those first seven Breeders\u2019 Cup races.<\/p>\n Her advice to young people? \u201cDon\u2019t dodge anything and show a willingness to be part of something bigger.\u201d<\/p>\n She is proof of how well a can-do attitude can work, even in an industry such as horse racing that has long been associated with male leadership.<\/p>\n \u201cI started at the bottom and I would say I have not been held back in any way,\u201d Delgado said. \u201cAs a matter of fact, I\u2019ve had extraordinary leadership that has really given me the opportunity to excel.\u201d<\/p>\n