Roy and Gretchen Jackson and the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine’s George D. Widener Hospital for Large Animals at the New Bolton Center have been honored with the 2006 Special Eclipse Award. The Special Eclipse Award, which is presented by the National Turf Writers Association, Daily Racing Form, and the National Thoroughbred Racing Association honors outstanding individual achievements in, or contributions to, the sport of Thoroughbred racing.

The announcement was made Jan. 16.

The Jacksons, owners of Kentucky Derby winner Barbaro, and the representatives from the New Bolton Center,who were responsible for the horse’s emergency surgery and continued recovery will be presented the Special Eclipse at the awards dinner Jan. 22 at the Beverly Wilshire Four Seasons Hotel in Beverly Hills, Calif.

In the hours that followed the near fatal injury to Barbaro in the May 20 Preakness Stakes, the nation’s attention was focused on the Jacksons–who campaigned Barbaro with trainer Michael Matz and jockey Edgar Prado–and the veterinary staff at the New Bolton Center, led by chief of surgery Dean Richardson, DVM, Dipl. ACVS. In the difficult first hours of the crisis, the Jacksons took every reasonable measure to save Barbaro’s life as an outpouring of gifts and well-wishes flowed in to the New Bolton Center from around the world