Trainer John Canty Dies of Pneumonia at 72
Thoroughbred trainer John Canty, who saddled Royal Oak, Unconscious and Time to Leave, died of pneumonia Tuesday at Huntington Memorial Hospital in Pasadena. He was 72.
Canty won back-to-back runnings of the Charles H. Strub Stakes with Unconscious in 1972 and Royal Oak in 1973.
A year before winning the Strub, Unconscious won the San Felipe Handicap and California Derby before finishing fifth as the favorite in the Kentucky Derby.
Canty was born in Ireland, where his father and grandfather were trainers. Canty came to the United States in 1953 and took out his California trainer’s license in 1959.
Canty leaves his wife, Jeanne, at their home in nearby Arcadia and two sisters and a brother in Ireland. Funeral arrangements are pending.
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