Triple Crown Trophy 2015: Photos from American Pharoah's Belmont Celebration

First comes the Triple Crown, then comes the celebration. That's what happened to American Pharoah, jockey Victor Espinoza, trainer Bob Baffert and owner Ahmed Zayat after the thoroughbred cruised to victory at the Belmont Stakes to capture the most elusive title in horse racing. 

Let's start at the beginning of the end, with the New York Racing Association offering this photo of Espinoza burying himself into American Pharoah down the final stretch:

That was followed by this brilliant image from thoroughbred horse photography company Photos By Z that includes the unofficial time for American Pharoah in the background:

Following that, SportsCenter tweeted out a picture of Espinoza with his right arm raised in exuberance after American Pharoah made history:

There's not a more pure image to encapsulate everything that American Pharoah and Espinoza have gone through during this run even before the Triple Crown races back to March's Rebel Stakes and April's Arkansas Derby. 

Well, that may not be entirely true, as Espinoza provided one more indelible image sitting atop American Pharoah like a king ready to accept his crown:

Rob Carr/Getty Images

All of that work led to American Pharoah's crew hoisting the long-hidden Triple Crown Trophy high in the air, via SportsCenter:

As impressive as that trophy is, it wasn't the only piece of hardware American Pharoah won on Saturday. He also captured the official Belmont Stakes Trophy, though, everyone seemed more interested in the other one, via Anita Bray Farrell of WKRC-TV in Cincinnati, Ohio:

Zayat has been soaking up every minute of joy from American Pharoah's run. The owner had never won a Triple Crown race prior to this year, coming close in 2012 with Bodemeister finishing behind I'll Have Another at Churchill Downs and Pimlico. 

There was also something for the horse, as American Pharoah got to don the famous carnation blanket seen below:

Seth Wenig/Associated Press

After American Pharoah won, Zayat and his family made their way down to the podium to get in on the celebration. Here's a snapshot of them holding the Triple Crown and Belmont Stakes trophies:

Julio Cortez/Associated Press

Of course, there are also fans who had reason to rejoice in American Pharoah's win. He may not have been paying money with 10-13 odds, per OddsShark.com, but there was cash to be had with the right trifecta wager. 

Whatever the bets may have been, ESPN tweeted out an image of the crowded lines to cash in betting tickets after the race ended:

Even though that is a lot of people waiting, the Belmont Stakes did put a cap on its attendance this year. Matt Hegarty of the Daily Racing Form (h/t The Sporting News) reported Belmont Park was only allowing 90,000 fans in due to a "dangerous and chaotic scene outside the grandstand" during California Chrome's run in 2014. 

As the many images from Belmont Park show, this was a special day in sports. American Pharoah erased 37 years of history for horse racing, which had seen 13 horses win the first two legs of the Triple Crown since 1979. 

There are certain moments that captivate a nation, often through the prism of sports. Horse racing has been patiently waiting to add someone into its exclusive club. American Pharoah looked like the best of this year's bunch after the Kentucky Derby, kept things up at the Preakness Stakes and finished it off at the Belmont Stakes. 

After all of the work over the last five weeks, Baffert, Espinoza and Zayat are able to take time to soak in everything they have accomplished with American Pharoah.