SEVERAL UNITS RECEIVE AWARDS FOR THEIR PARTICIPATION
May 1, 2022. Louisville, KY. – After a two-year hiatus, the beloved event that started the Kentucky Derby Festival – the Zoeller Pump Company Pegasus Parade – returned to Broadway this year as thousands of spectators lined downtown Louisville streets to experience the festival favorite. The theme of this year’s parade – “Loving Louisville” – celebrated all there is to love about the city, and for the first time ever, the Louisville community was honored as Grand Marshals of the 2022 event.
The parade has been bringing the community together for more than 65 years. VIPs appearing in the Pegasus Parade included Bellarmine Knights Men’s Basketball Team, Ethan the Dog, Kentucky’s Virginia Moore, University of Louisville Teams, Sacred Heart Academy Girls Basketball Team and more. The parade also featured equestrian units, marching bands and dozens of specialty units.
Several of the units participating in the 2022 Zoeller Pump Company Pegasus Parade received awards for their participation, including:
Norton Healthcare took home the Addison McGhee Grand Champion Award for best overall float; Second Chance @ Life won the 2nd Place KDF Board Chair’s Award; Hwang’s Martial Arts received the 3rd Place KDF President’s Award; and City of Jeffersontown won the Grand Marshal’s Award for best representation of the theme.
Jasper Marching Wildcats won the Grand Prize in the Basil Caummisar Battle of the Bands competition.
The parade is known for its beautiful equestrian units. The first-place award for Best Mounted Equestrian Unit went to Dark Horse Equestrian Drill Team. Best Commercial Equestrian Unit went to We Are Friends with Equines of All Sizes. Equine Trail Advocates won the Pooper Stars Award.
Zoeller Pump Company returns as Title Sponsor of the event since 2020, joining Contributing Sponsor Kentucky Venues, The Galt House as the Official Hotel and Media Partner, WAVE.
The Pegasus Parade – the Kentucky Derby Festival’s founding event – is one of nearly 70 events produced by the Kentucky Derby Festival in the spring. The first parade was organized by just a handful of volunteers in 1956 on a budget of $640. It provides an estimated impact of $22 million to the area’s economy.
