January 12, 2026. Louisville, KY. – It was a crowning moment this morning as the Kentucky Derby Festival announced the 2026 Royal Court at Dillard’s in Mall St. Matthews. Five young women have been selected to serve as Princesses for this year’s Kentucky Derby Festival.
“Announcing Kentucky Derby Festival royalty is a tradition that lets everyone know Derby season is just around the corner,” said Matt Gibson, Kentucky Derby Festival President & CEO. “Each year, exceptional young women become ambassadors for the Festival and the community, and we’re honored to welcome the 2026 Royal Court as they begin their reign.”
The Court will serve as official ambassadors of the Festival, as well as Louisville and the Commonwealth. The Program is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity celebrating the state’s most civic-minded and academically achieving college students, and each woman receives a $2,000 scholarship ($1,000 from the Fillies, Inc., and $1,000 from the Kentucky Derby Festival Foundation).
The 2026 Royal Court was selected after attending final judging with 27 other finalist candidates. There were nearly 100 original applicants for the Royal Court Program, representing more than 15 colleges and universities from around Kentucky and Indiana and throughout the region. All of the applicants went through preliminary judging in November.
The Royal Court is coordinated by The Fillies, Inc., a volunteer group that works closely with the Festival. Fillies President Shannon Adkins joined Kentucky Derby Festival President and CEO Matt Gibson, as well as 2026 Derby Festival Chair Louis Waterman, in crowning the newly appointed court.
The members of the 2026 Court are:
Mallory Brown of Bardstown, KY – Mallory, 22-years-old, is a senior Presidential Scholar at the University of Kentucky pursuing a degree in Biology and will begin medical school in the fall. She is a member of the Rising Leaders Cohort within the Honors College and served as President of the Beta Psi Chapter of Alpha Delta Pi Sorority, where she was responsible for overseeing all programming, operations and experiences for the 300+ members. Mallory is also involved with the Ronald McDonald House Charities of the Bluegrass, consistently participating in fundraising, outreach and volunteer efforts to help them accomplish their mission of supporting families with hospitalized children.
Vy Pham {Vee / Fam}, of Louisville KY – Vy, 21-years-old, is a senior at the University of Louisville pursuing a degree in Mechanical Engineering at the J.B. Speed School of Engineering. She serves on the Speed School Student Council, which she formerly led as President, and currently mentors as the Undergraduate Advisor. She is also the Vice President of Conferences for the National Association of Engineering Student Councils, as well as a Co-founder and Director of the Cardinal Crescent Lion Dance Association, and a campus REACH tutor. Vy completed a Mechanical Engineering Co-op for Gulfstream Aerospace in Savannah, Ga., and is a Youth Leader for the Vietnamese Eucharistic Youth Movement.
Sydney Shouse of Louisville, KY – Sydney, 22-years-old, is a graduate of the University of Kentucky, where she majored in Communications and minored in Military Leadership, and is pursuing an MBA at Eastern Kentucky University. She has been selected for Euro-NATO Joint Jet Pilot Training (ENJJPT), a competitive pilot training pipeline for top U.S. Air Force officers training to fly high-performance jet aircraft alongside the United States’ NATO allies. She will commission as a Second Lieutenant in the U.S. Air Force in the spring. She is a member of the Air Force ROTC at the University of Kentucky and UK’s Equestrian Team. Sydney also attended Airmanship 490 at the U.S. Air Force Academy and holds both a Basic Parachutist qualification and a Private Pilot License.
Tania Vergara-Gongora {TAH-Nyah / Ver-Gaura / Gohne-Gora} of Louisville KY – Tania, 20-years-old, is a junior at Bellarmine University pursuing a degree in Marketing with minors in Marketing Communications and Broadcasting, Production & Performance. She is a Bellarmine Global Ambassador and Development Office intern. She’s also a Founding Member of the National Federation for Catholic Youth Ministry’s (NFCYM) National Youth Advisory, as well as a Catholic youth public speaker and artist. Since receiving a message of Joy from Pope Francis in 2022, Tania has made it her life mission to spread joy through digital media, bilingual storytelling, and performing arts to bridge communities and empower young people to embrace their inner light and authentic identity.
Brianna Williams of Louisville, KY – Brianna, 24-years-old, is a Summa Cum Laude graduate of the University of Louisville, where she received a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and a minor in Diversity and Inequality. She is a second-year PhD student pursuing a degree in Educational Psychology, Measurement, and Evaluation. During her undergraduate career, she was awarded the President’s Volunteer Service Award, was initiated into the Xi Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., where she served as President, and founded the Junior Miss Black and Old Gold Pageant, an initiative serving young ladies in our local school district. She works as a Graduate Assistant of Leadership Development at UofL and is a substitute teacher at Jefferson County Public Schools.
Two alternates were chosen – Jillian Sarver of Glendale, KY, a junior at the University of Louisville, was chosen as the first alternate. Kayla Lancaster of Lebanon, KY, a senior at the University of Louisville, was chosen as the second alternate. They will become Princesses if one of the other women is unable to serve.
One of the five Princesses will be crowned the Derby Festival Queen by a spin-of-the-wheel at the annual Fillies Derby Ball Presented by Courtesy Cadillac on Saturday, March 28 at the Omni Louisville Hotel.
Since 1959, the Royal Court Program has been overseen by members of The Fillies, Inc., a non-profit organization with 250 community volunteers who work closely with the Derby Festival. Candidates for the Princess Program must maintain a minimum 3.0 grade-point average and are selected by a panel of three out-of-state judges. Criteria for selection includes knowledge of the Derby Festival, poise, intelligence, personality and campus and community involvement.
The first Derby Festival Princess was crowned in 1957, the second year of the Festival. Since then, Derby Festival Queens and Courts have made an impression on their community. Previous Princesses include Miss Kentucky 2018 Katie Bouchard Wilkinson, Miss Kentucky 2022 Hannah Edelen, Miss Kentucky 2023 Mallory Hudson and a number of other community leaders.
