Louisville-native Ngo is a second-year graduate student studying Public Health with a concentration in Health Policy. She is the current director of Professional Development in the Graduate Student Council, a Trustee’s Scholar, and has earned departmental honors in the Psychology Department for successful defense of her thesis.

Louisville-native Porter is a senior majoring in both Computer Information Systems and Marketing. She is a Woodford R. Porter Scholar, a student worker in the Admissions Office, President’s Office, and Campus Housing Department at UofL, and is heavily involved in extracurriculars such as the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority. 

They join Northern Kentucky University students Sarah Rhodes and Haven Wolfe, and University of Kentucky student Molly Sullivan on the five-person court. 

Additionally, Olivia Andrews, a UofL senior from New Albany, Indiana, is a second alternate should one of the princesses be unable to serve. UK junior Lauren Carter is first alternative. 

The Royal Court was selected after attending final judging with 25 other finalist candidates. There were nearly 80 original applicants for the program, representing different colleges and universities from around Kentucky and the region. All the applicants went through preliminary judging in November.

One of the five will be crowned the Derby Festival Queen by a spin-of-the-wheel at the annual Fillies Derby Ball on April 9 at The Galt House. Each woman will receive a $2,000 scholarship ($1,000 from the Fillies and $1,000 from the Kentucky Derby Festival Foundation).

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. Previous Princesses have included former Kentucky Governor Martha Layne Collins and the late Gail Gorski, the first female pilot ever hired by United Airlines.

Giavanna (Gia) Combs of Louisville is a 20-year-old junior at the University of Louisville majoring in psychology with a minor in Pan-African studies. She is a Woodford R. Porter Scholar, Denny Crum Scholar, and a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority. She also participated in the medical companion program with the .

Leah Hazelwood of Lebanon is a 19-year-old sophomore at the University of Louisville dual majoring in political science and liberal studies with concentrations in race & gender studies, global public health and economics. She is a McConnell Scholar, a Harvard Kennedy Public Policy Leadership Scholar, the College of Arts and Sciences Vice President, a member of Chi Omega Sorority, and a “children’s advocate” for the .

They join Hannah Maria Edelen, a senior at Northern Kentucky University; Molly Jett, a senior at Bellarmine University; and Hannah Robb, a junior at Bellarmine University.

Additionally, Lexington native Grace Rahman, a UofL post-baccalaureate student entering med school in the fall, was chosen as first alternate. 

As part of the Derby Festival court, these students will act as ambassadors for the 2020 Kentucky Derby Festival, attending nearly 70 events over a two-week period. One of the five will be crowned the Derby Festival Queen by a spin-of-the-wheel at the annual Fillies Derby Ball on April 4 at The Galt House. Each woman will receive a $2,000 scholarship.

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. 

Photos taken by KDF Official Photographer Marvin Young.