Obituary of Herve Filion

Harness racing has lost a legend. Hervé Filion, arguably the best driver to ever sit in a sulky, died Thursday after battling an illness. He was 77. The native of Angers, Quebec, who started driving at the age of 13, hit his stride during the heyday of harness racing, winning his first of 16 national dash-win titles in 1968. In 1971, he passed Hall of Famer Billy Haughton to become the winningest driver in the history of the sport, a title he would hold for 41 years. In 1976, at just 36 years old, he became the youngest inductee into both the U.S. Harness Racing Hall of Fame and the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame. Filion, who lived in Albertson, on Long island, was perhaps the best ambassador the sport will ever know. Throughout his career, he received numerous requests from racetracks throughout North America to make appearances. He said he felt he owed it to the industry that had given so much to him and his family. As harness racing's ultimate showman, Filion never missed an opportunity to entertain the fans; as he did after winning the 1979 Little Brown Jug with Hot Hitter, when he stood up in the sulky as he paraded in front of the crowd of 41,027 on his way back to the winner's circle. In 2012, Filion told The NY Post many things contributed to his long reign at the top, but perhaps the most important was luck. "You have to be lucky in anything you do in life," Filion said. "The right place at the right time, and in the right situation. I was very lucky all my life. Don't hold it against me, I was born that way," Filion added with a laugh. Filion won 15,183 races in his career. By comparison, the all-time leading thoroughbred jockey, the retired Russell Baze, had 12,842 victories. Haughton once said: "There are a lot of good harness drivers, a few great ones….and then there is Filion." - A special thank you to Debbie Little of the New York Post for allowing us to use her article. In honor of Herve, donations can be made to: https://www.gofundme.com/the-herve-filion-leagcey-fund