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Kentucky Derby favorite Omaha Beach scratched due to breathing problem

Exercise rider Taylor Cambra rides Omaha Beach during a workout Wednesday at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky. Although it is not expected to be life-threatening or career-ending, a breathing problem that will require surgery has forced the Kentucky Derby favorite off the Triple Crown trail.
Exercise rider Taylor Cambra rides Omaha Beach during a workout Wednesday at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky. Although it is not expected to be life-threatening or career-ending, a breathing problem that will require surgery has forced the Kentucky Derby favorite off the Triple Crown trail. Exercise rider Taylor Cambra rides Omaha Beach during a workout Wednesday at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky. Although it is not expected to be life-threatening or career-ending, a breathing problem that will require surgery has forced the Kentucky Derby favorite off the Triple Crown trail.

By Associated Press 4 min read

photo Omaha Beach trainer Richard Mandella, left, grooms the horse before a workout Wednesday at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky. The 145th running of the Kentucky Derby is scheduled for Saturday, and Omaha Beach was the favorite before being scratched Wednesday due to a breathing problem.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Suddenly, the Kentucky Derby is wide open.

Omaha Beach, the horse favored to win the first leg of this year’s Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing, was scratched because of a breathing problem Wednesday night, leaving a pair of Hall of Famers on the sideline – trainer Richard Mandella and jockey Mike Smith.

Churchill Downs oddsmaker Mike Battaglia revised the morning line to make Game Winner the 9-2 favorite for the 1 1/4-mile race Saturday.

Improbable and Roadster were installed as the co-second choices at 5-1, giving five-time Kentucky Derby-winning trainer Bob Baffert the top three choices in the 20-horse field.

Mandella told The Associated Press that Omaha Beach developed a cough and a subsequent veterinary exam showed the colt has an entrapped epiglottis. It’s generally not life- or career-threatening and is typically corrected with minor surgery.