OZONE PARK, N.Y. – Linda Rice became Thoroughbred racing’s all-time winningest female trainer when Treaty Obligation won Saturday’s sixth race at Aqueduct. It was the 2,511th victory of Rice’s career, moving her past Kathleen O’Connell, who is still active. “It’s another nice accomplishment,” Rice said. “When I started training there were very few women here and I’m very proud to see there’s women doing great things all over the country now. When I came to New York that was not the case. If I helped open up any of those doors, I’m happy to have done that.” O’Connell held the title of all-time leading female trainer in wins for 20 months, having surpassed Kim Hammond in March 2023. Coincidentally, Rice and O’Connell had horses in the same race Saturday at Parx where Rice’s Everyoneloveslinda ran fourth and O’Connell’s Dream Concert ran fifth. :: Bet with the Best! Get FREE All-Access PPs and Weekly Cashback when you wager on DRF Bets. “I’m always rooting for, she is a win machine,” Rice said of O’Connell. “Gosh, she’s done tremendous.” Rice, 60, started training in New Jersey in 1987 but moved her operation to New York in 1992. She has recorded the majority of her 2,511 wins at New York Racing Association tracks and is one of the things she is most proud of. “It’s a little bit emotional to know that when I came to New York, Sally Bailie had won the first Grade 1 for a woman, but there were only scattered few women,” Rice said. “Now, they’re doing great things.” In 2009, Rice became the first female trainer to win the trainer’s title at Saratoga, something she did outright. She won a second title in 2023, winning the last race on the last day of the meet to tie Chad Brown. In 2023, Rice led all trainers on the NYRA circuit in wins with 164, which tied a NYRA single-year record set by David Jacobson in 2013. Starting with the 2022 Aqueduct fall meet, Rice won or shared five consecutive meet titles on this circuit. Rice had her best year in 2023 when she won 167 races and her horses earned $10.4 million in purse money. Rice’s career purse earnings of $111,061,100 rank her 26th all time. Rice said the two Saratoga titles, La Verdad’s Eclipse Award as champion female sprinter in 2015, and City Zip winning all three juvenile stakes at Saratoga in 2000 are her career highlights. “To me, those are my biggest accomplishments,” Rice said. :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.