| Harvey Vanier | |
| Occupation: | Jockey, Trainer, Owner & Breeder |
| Birth Place: | Diller, Nebraska, United States |
| Birth Date: | 21 April 1924 |
| Death Place: | Versailles, Kentucky |
| Race: | Derby Trial Stakes (1970, 1977) Rebel Stakes (1970) Fayette Stakes (1979) La Cañada Stakes (1982) American Derby (1983, 1987) Arlington Classic (1983) Blue Grass Stakes (1983, 1989) Travers Stakes (1983) Donn Handicap (1984) Shadwell Turf Mile Stakes (1987) Red Bank Stakes (1988) Cornhusker Handicap (1989, 1995) Lane's End Stakes (1989) Pennsylvania Derby (1989) Robert F. Carey Memorial Handicap (1989, 1995, 1996) Illinois Oaks (1990) Turfway Park Fall Championship Stakes (1993) Washington Park Handicap (1993) Sixty Sails Handicap (1994) Alcibiades Stakes (1996) Arlington-Washington Lassie Stakes (1996) Isaac Murphy Handicap (1997) |
| Horses: | Play Fellow, Western Playboy |
Harvey L. Vanier (April 21, 1924 - December 1, 2013) was an American trainer, owner and breeder of Thoroughbred racehorses. With his wife Nancy Aiken-Vanier, they owned and bred racehorses on their Fairberry Farm in Waterloo, Illinois.
Vanier began his career in Thoroughbred racing as a jockey, first riding as a boy of 12 at state and county fairs. Once old enough to obtain a professional license, he rode at Nebraska tracks. Weight gain ended his riding career in his late teens and in 1942 he turned to training. However, that was short-lived when he joined the United States Army and would serve in Europe during World War II.[1] [2] [3]