Ron Turcotte, who famously rode Secretariat to the Triple Crown in 1973 to earn an enduring place in horse racing lore, died Friday at the age of 84.

Turcotte's longtime friend and business partner Leonard Lusky said the Canadian-born Hall of Famer died of natural causes at his home near Grand Falls, New Brunswick.

In a career spanning nearly two decades, Turcotte won the Kentucky Derby, Preakness and Belmont Stakes twice each.

But he'll go down in history as the jockey who guided Secretariat on an electrifying Triple Crown run in 1973 -- a sweep that ended a Triple Crown drought that had stretched back to Citation's treble in 1948.

"Ron Turcotte will be forever remembered for guiding Secretariat to Triple Crown glory in 1973," David O'Rourke, president of the New York Racing Associati

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