George Goodenough: Nijinsky inspired the love of racing in my brother when he was 14. At his school there was a small but select group of racing enthusiasts. Kevin "Ashleigh Brook" Bishop was one of their number. This passion was passed on to my 4yo self and the first race I remember watching was Mill Reef's Derby the following year. My brother Roger was touring the states in 1992 and brazenly asked the stud in Kentucky if he could meet Nijinsky, his equine hero. They willingly obliged and a star struck brother actually got to pat the old boy on his neck. Two weeks later the death of Nijinsky was announced and Brough Scott wrote a fantastic obituary entitled "One Swallow That Made A Summer."
Nigel Beardsley: Interesting article. Yes, Camelot should have won the Triple Crown. Not least because I backed him to win it! I was at Doncaster that day and we watched how carefully he was saddled and he looked great in the paddock. The problem was not with the going, the trip or the horse. It was with the jockey I'm afraid. Probably the worst ride ever by Joseph O'Brien (and he knew it). He kept him to the inside all the way round and was always going to be short of racing room. Got to say, even before they made the final turn with about 6 furlongs to go, I saw the sad writing on the wall. Don't forget, this was not long after Joseph had replaced Johnny Murtagh as stable jockey and as popular as Johhny was among other jockeys, Joseph was quite the opposite. There was no way any of the no hopers would make way for the bosses son in the way that they may have done for Johnny. So whilst I have huge respect for what Joseph has achieved as jockey and trainer, I still regard his ride of Camelot as his worst ever.
Andrew Pelis: I am inclined to agree with David that the Triple Crown's allure has been somewhat diluted.
Given the increased number of international Group One races on offer and the fact that the Group One power seems to lie in the hands of a select group of owners and trainers who prioritise the creation of stallions all too often, the Triple Crown races, in particular the Leger, has lessened in pulling power, I fear.
For me, the Guineas is the hardest leg to win. Oh So Sharp scraped home in hers - it comes so early in the year, against precocious types - and a Triple Crown winner should have stamina and class - making the race against speedsters and specialist milers, with little margin for tactical error, a huge challenge that early on in the year.
The Derby and Leger are longer races, giving a jockey longer to sort out tactics. Class should be enough to see them home.
I remember some extra coverage of Oh So Sharp's bid at the time but this was not sensational news and one of the greatest ever stories that I can recall. I would say that Pebble's Breeders' Cup triumph and Dancing Brave's Arc victory the following year received as many plaudits.
And the only horse since Oh So Sharp to make it to the third leg is Camelot and his Leger felt as though it was almost stage-managed, with the field falling apart. But he was unable to convert.
Nashwan, Sea The Stars, Midway Lady, Salsabil, Kazzia and Minding all won the first two legs but did not contest the Leger.
So, taking into account injuries and other targets, just one horse out of seven who could have attempted it since 1985, ran in the final leg.
That tells me there are more valuable prizes elsewhere and that breeders are focussed on shorter distance Group One success. That is the sign of the times. An Irish Champion Stakes victory maybe looks more attractive on a cv.
However, the mystique around a Triple Crown winning stallion would surely override any stigmas? I would love to see it happen.
I believe that if we are racing by July, that we might lose the Guineas races. I think that by then, we are playing catch up with the all-age mile championship races and I struggle to see how a three year-old mile campaign can fit in the Guineas, Irish Guineas and St James's Palace Stakes, with the Sussex Stakes and Prix Jacques Le Marois taking place in July and August.
Plus the dynamics of the Guineas are altered. A May Guineas attracts precocious juveniles from the previous year, non-stayers, milers and middle distance horses all in the mix. It helps establish who goes where for the rest of the season.
By July, the early to hand horses have lost out, there are later maturing types and if trainers know their horses' strengths, they will run in races accordingly. If you have a sprinter in July, you aren't going to suddenly run it over a mile and ruin the rest of the year.
With the Derby and Oaks, Epsom winners will still have a choice of middle distance races to the end of the campaign. There are more middle distance options as the year progresses. So a delayed Derby and Oaks would work. I just don't see it for the Guineas however, because of the way the big mile races play out later in the season (The SJP and Coronation Stakes in June, I believe are the last Group One races of the year, over a mile and exclusive to 3yos).
Two of the main benefactors of a delayed season could be York and Doncaster. It would be brilliant to see the St Leger's status heightened and if there was a late Derby, it would be easy to see horses going on to Doncaster from Epsom.
So I don't see a Triple Crown winner in 2020.
Dave Chapman: Nijinsky was Oh So Special (as indeed was Oh So Sharp) both trained by titans of the sport, at a time when the Triple Crown meant a lot more to the racing public than it seems to now, in fact Nijinskys feat was so well thought of that I sometimes think he was elevated to a higher perch than maybe he deserved. He was without doubt a great great horse but the two that followed him only 1 yr later to my mind were both better horses Brigadier Gerrard and Mill Reef – infact for me (and its only an opinion) the latter was the best horse I have ever seen until the wonderful Frankel turned up, and yes I know the Mercer ridden horse beat Mill Reef but Mill Reef won over a raft of distances on all kinds of ground. For me Mill Reef would of easily won the Triple Crown but his owner decided to go down a different route.
Going back to the Triple Crown though as for Pinatubo its a no from me -he just doesn’t strike me as a stayer, in fact I would be surprised if he even won the Derby never mind the Ledger, if he were to win a Derby I am not even sure that his owner would even think about an entry for the race because as I said earlier I don’t feel the Triple Crown is as big a thing today as it used to be.