Rita Hayworth was one of the top film stars of Hollywood’s Golden Age. She also loved sports, appearing in Hollywood sports films and living a sporting life.
Born Margarita Carmen Cansino, Hayworth starred in two sports-related films, both released in 1937. In Girls Can Play, Hayworth played a catcher on a girls’ semi-professional softball team, and in The Game That Kills, she played a character in an ice hockey film.
(From Left) Rita Hayworth, Julie Bishop, and George McKay in Girls Can Play (photo courtesy IMDb)
During the peak of her movie career in the 1940s, Hayworth stayed active and fit by playing several sports, including skiing, golf, tennis, badminton, and table tennis. Her athletic grace was especially apparent on the tennis courts, and she added table tennis and badminton to her fitness routine.
An avid skier, Hayworth traveled frequently to Sun Valley Ski Resort, a popular skiing venue in Idaho. Hayworth also played golf regularly at The Riviera Club in Los Angeles.
Kahn and Hayworth at the races in 1949 (photo courtesy Paulick Report)
Horse racing may have been her primary love in sports, which she discovered through her third husband, Aly Khan. Khan’s family owned and raced horses. Hayworth joined the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club in California and owned a filly, Double Rose. The young mare won multiple races overseas and finished second in the 1949 Prix d’Arc de Triomphe.
During her marriage to Khan, Hayworth often visited horse stables and training grounds. She also spent time at Ongar Stud, a racehorse stud farm located on the outskirts of Dublin, Ireland. Ironically, Hayworth acknowledged that she was afraid of horses and wasn’t keen on riding them. “I rode on horseback,” Hayworth once said, “although I was terrified of them (horses).”
Of course, those sporting endeavors didn’t interfere with Hayworth’s long and illustrious Hollywood career. She starring in numerous films, including Music in My Heart (1940), The Strawberry Blonde (1941), You’ll Never Get Rich (1941), My Gal Sal (1942), You Were Never Lonelier (1942), Cover Girl (1944), Tonight and Every Night (1945), Gilda (1946), Down to Earth (1947), The Lady from Shanghai (1947), Miss Sadie Thompson (1953), Pal Joey (1957), and Separate Tables (1958).
One of Hollywood’s most memorable names, Rita Hayworth died at the age of 68 in 1987 following a seven-year battle with Alzheimer’s.
