Trainer George Handy, 102-Year-Old WWII Veteran, Passes: 'A True American Character'

George Handy, a decorated World War II veteran, a Thoroughbred trainer for nearly 80 years, and a beloved member of the horse racing community, died on Sept. 30 in Asheville, N.C. He was 102 years old.

“He was a legend in my time, a true American character, and a precious person,” said equine veterinarian Dr. Tom Brokken, who knew Handy for many years and praised him for his ability to always see the bright side of life.

Trainer Ned Allard, who got his start working for Handy in the mid-1950s, said of his former boss, “I don’t know of a soul who didn’t like him. He made the game a lot of fun.”

Born July 13, 1923, in Fairhaven, Mass., Handy was attracted to horses at an early age, helping run pony rides in a city park and then delivering newspapers while riding a retired racehorse someone had given him. His son, George Handy Jr., said his father used to ride that same horse to school.

Handy enlisted in the Navy in his final week of high school. He was rejected at first because of flat feet, but wouldn’t take no for an answer from the recruiting officer. Assigned to the battleship USS Kidd, Handy served as a radar operator on a vessel often used as a radar picket ship that sailed ahead of the fleet to warn of impending enemy air attacks. USS Kidd saw action in multiple theaters in the South Pacific until it was nearly sunk in a Japanese kamikaze attack during the Battle of Okinawa in 1945. Thirty-eight men died and 55 others were wounded.

One of the wounded sailors was George Handy, who was sent home and honorably discharged after receiving eight Bronze Stars for bravery as well as a Purple Heart.

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After he returned to Massachusetts and recovered from the multiple injuries sustained in the attack, Handy went to the racetrack, galloping horses and eventually becoming a trainer, starting out at Pascoag Park in Rhode Island, then following the New England circuit that would include Lincoln Downs, Narragansett Park, Suffolk Downs, and Rockingham Park. He would later be inducted in the New England Racing Hall of Fame.

In 1957, Handy hired Ned Allard to walk hots for him. “I was just a young boy, but he taught me to pony and gallop horses,” Allard recalled. “By the time I was 15 I was his assistant trainer.”

When Handy moved from the New England circuit to Philadelphia’s Liberty Bell Park in 1970, Allard went out on his own. He went on to win over 2,800 races to date, including multiple Grade 1s with champion and Hall of Fame filly Mom’s Command.

Equibase records do not include the first 20 years of Handy’s training career but list 1,364 victories since 1964, his most recent win coming in 2016. One of his best horses was 1981 Illinois Derby winner Paristo, who finished third in that year’s Preakness. Another was Impecunious, winner of the 1973 Arkansas Derby after finishing third to Secretariat in the Bay Shore Stakes.

“A lot of New York trainers from big stables would send some of their problem horses to him,” George Handy Jr. said of his father. “He had a reputation as a ‘leg man.’”

Handy also had a reputation as a fashionable dresser – “a Beau Brummell” his son called him – and a penchant for fancy cars. “He loved the color orange,” George Handy Jr. said, “and he would get a new Cadillac every two years. One year he went to a dealer and bought a white Cadillac and asked them to paint it tangerine orange.” Over the years, Handy’s son said, his father owned an orange Mercedes Benz and a classic Excalibur. His last automobile was a 40th anniversary edition of the Ford Mustang convertible, purchased in 2004, after Handy turned 80. He had to give up driving in his 90s.

Related: Fountain Of Youth: Trainer George Handy Still Saddling Winners At 92

“He was a very colorful guy with a great sense of humor. He was always well dressed and sharp as a tack,” Allard remembered. “Was at the barn early every morning and won a ton of races. He had so many things going for him and he was a darn good horseman. He had this filly named Candy House that was pretty nuts. He bought her real cheap and had to take her to the post himself on the pony. She ended up making a lot of money. He would do whatever needed to be done, thinking outside of the box at times.”

Handy had two daughters who have passed away. He is survived by his son, George Jr., and three granddaughters.

George Handy Jr. said a celebration of life is being considered that would be conducted online so as many people as possible whose lives were touched by his father would be able to participate.

This story was originally reported by Paulick Report on Oct 7, 2025, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Paulick Report as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

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