Linda Rice is a third-generation horse trainer from Racine, Wisconsin, who learned the business from her father, Clyde Rice. She was breaking yearlings by age 13 and took out her trainer’s license at 23. Today she races year-round in New York as a trainer, owner and breeder, which gives her a firsthand view of the challenges New York horsemen face. She has served on the NYTHA Board since 2002, and in 2017 she became the first woman elected First Vice President. Her priorities are protecting the purse account, securing live race dates for New York horsemen, protecting the integrity of the sport and keeping down workers’ compensation costs. As longtime chair of the Scholarship Committee, she has helped award more than $1.2 million in grants to backstretch workers and their families.

On the track, Rice became the first woman to win a training title at Saratoga in 2009, and she shared the Saratoga title again in 2023. In 2025 she was the NYRA circuit’s leading trainer and leading owner, setting a single season record with 172 wins. In 2026 she added titles at Aqueduct and Belmont at the Big A. Her best-known horses include 2015 Eclipse Award champion La Verdad and Grade 1 winners City Zip, Palace, Tenski and Things Change. Her goal is to represent all horsemen and build a stronger future for New York racing.