Wikipedia:Main Page history/2017 January 13

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From today's featured article

Lexington, a racehorse whose pedigree was suspect in the eyes of British racing authorities
Lexington, a racehorse whose pedigree was suspect

The Jersey Act was a 1913 regulation by the British Jockey Club and the owners of the General Stud Book that prevented most American-bred Thoroughbred horses from registering with them. It was intended to halt the increasing importation of racehorses of possibly impure bloodlines after a series of bans on gambling by US states, including gambling on horse races. The loss of breeding records during the American Civil War and the late beginning of the registration of American Thoroughbreds led many in the British racing establishment to doubt that the American-bred horses were purebred. The Act prohibited the registration of horses unless all of their Thoroughbred ancestors had been registered. Despite protests from American breeders the regulation was in force until 1949. By then, ineligible horses were increasingly successful in races in Europe, British and Irish breeders had lost access to French Thoroughbreds during and after the Second World War, and any impure ancestors of the American bloodlines had receded far back in most horses' ancestry. (Full article...)

Did you know...

Female hen flea
Female hen flea

In the news

The Danube, frozen amid a cold snap in Europe
The Danube on January 9

On this day...

January 13: St. Knut's Day in Finland and Sweden

Steve Ballmer
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From today's featured list

Wilt Chamberlain, Philadelphia's 1959 territorial pick
Wilt Chamberlain, Philadelphia's 1959 territorial pick

A territorial pick was a type of special draft choice used in the Basketball Association of America (BAA) draft in 1949 and in the National Basketball Association (NBA) draft after the 1950 season, the year in which the BAA was renamed the NBA. In the draft, NBA teams took turns selecting amateur U.S. college basketball players. Territorial picks were eliminated when the draft system was revamped in 1966. In the first 20 years of the BAA/NBA, the league was still trying to gain the support of fans who lived in or near the teams' home markets. To achieve this, the league introduced the territorial pick rule to help teams acquire popular players from colleges in their area who would presumably have strong local support. Before the draft, a team could forfeit its first-round draft pick and then select any player from within a 50-mile radius of its home arena. Although the territorial picks were selected before the draft, these picks were not factored into the overall selection count of the draft; therefore, the first non-territorial pick of the draft was considered the first overall pick. Of the 23 territorial picks, 11 players have been inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. (Full list...)

Today's featured picture

View from the Artist's Window

View from the Artist's Window is a painting from 1825 by the Danish Romantic landscape and architecture painter Martinus Rørbye. The painting is considered a highlight of Danish Golden Age art; it incorporates themes and symbols that resonated with its audience. It is presently held in the Statens Museum for Kunst in Copenhagen.

Painting: Martinus Rørbye

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