Veteran trainer, jockey Shirota is dead at age 78

Veteran trainer, jockey Shirota is dead at age 78

Published Jan. 4, 2012 6:52 p.m. ET

Mitch Shirota, a veteran trainer and jockey at Churchill Downs and elsewhere, has died. He was 78.

Churchill Downs officials said he died Wednesday at a hospital in Louisville, Ky., after a long illness.

The Hawaiian-born Shirota saddled 236 winners from 1,637 career starters. Before that, he was a jockey for 15 years in Mexico, Churchill Downs and other Kentucky tracks in the 1960s and early 1970s.

Visitation and a memorial service are tentatively scheduled for Christ Chapel in the Churchill Downs stable area on Saturday.

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