Horse Racing Suffers with Ontario’s Extended stay-at-home order

April 19, 2021 by Leave a Comment

“It just feels like it’s always the same people that get run over in this province,” he says. “It’s always agriculture, it’s always the people with a small or no voice at all. This is a very fragile industry that’s a pillar of agriculture. It’s hard to watch when your own government doesn’t appear to take the industry seriously. They kneecapped us a decade ago.”

Ohio, he says, is a whole different world than Ontario right now. Maybe it’s what Ontario would be like if we hadn’t bungled our way through the past few months.

“I went out for a steak last night with a couple of clients and the people that work here,” he says. “Two of our employees went to the Cleveland Indians game the other night, another person went to the movies. You still have to wear a mask, you still have to social distance, but the thing I found most interesting — as Ontario seems to be tripping over itself getting people vaccinated — I was literally in the States 24 hours and I had a needle in my arm…

Filed Under: Horse Racing News Tagged With: , ,

Horse racing is about to officially return to Woodbine

June 4, 2020 by Leave a Comment

Wager on WoodbineTORONTO — Woodbine Entertainment made the announcement that it will resume live horse racing this weekend. [Opening day is June 6, 2020]

That means harness racing will resume Friday at Woodbine Mohawk Park, with thoroughbred racing beginning Saturday at Woodbine Racetrack.

Racing at both venues will go without spectators and only essential personnel. Each track has implemented strict health-and-safety protocols.

“The horse-racing industry supports tens of thousands of jobs throughout our province, making the return of live racing this weekend very meaningful for many people,” Jim Lawson, the CEO of Woodbine Entertainment, said in a statement…

Filed Under: Horse Racing News Tagged With: , , ,

Big Week on Tap with Belmont Park Re-opening

June 1, 2020 by Leave a Comment

Belmont Park horse racingFour-time Eclipse Award-winning trainer Chad Brown was trackside Thursday at Belmont Park to watch e Five Racing Thoroughbreds’ Rushing Fall and Peter Brant’s New York-bred Fifty Five breeze on the inner turf in preparation for the Grade 3, $150,000 Beaugay slated for Opening Day on Wednesday, June 3.

The duo went a half-mile in company and reached the wire together in a time of 50.48 seconds. Brown said both horses will be entered in the Beaugay, a 1 1/6-mile turf test for fillies and mares 4-year-olds and upward. Entries for the Opening Day card at Belmont will be taken on Friday.

“They both worked fine and will be entered in the Beaugay,” said Brown.

Wager on Belmont Park and get cash back instantly.  Learn more here.

Klaravich Stables’ Newspaperofrecord will make her 4-year-old debut in the Grade 3, $150,000 Intercontinental, a seven-furlong turf sprint for older fillies and mares slated for Saturday, June 6.

The ultra-talented Lope De Vega bay went undefeated in her three-start juvenile campaign which included a win in the Grade 2 Miss Grillo at Belmont ahead of a score in the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf at Churchill Downs.

Last season, Newspaperofrecord completed the exacta in the Grade 3 Edgewood at Churchill Downs and Grade 3 Wonder Again at Belmont Park but was off-the-board when completing her season in the Grade 1 Belmont Oaks Invitational in July.

Brown said Newspaperofrecord is training well towards her seasonal debut.

“She seems pretty settled to me in her works and I’m real excited to get her career resumed. I’m going to try to keep her [at distances] only up to a mile,” said Brown. “Based on the way she’s training, and if she stays healthy, she should have a really good year.”

Source: NYRA

Filed Under: Horse Racing News Tagged With: ,

Ohio Horse Racing to Resume

May 14, 2020 by Leave a Comment

OSRC Passes Resolution Allowing for the Resumption of Live Racing in Ohio

The Ohio State Racing Commission during a Webex meeting Thursday, May 14th unanimously passed a motion allowing for the resumption of live racing in the state as well as setting the safety protocols under which stabling, training and racing will take place in the state.

The Ohio HBPA is working with ownership at both Thistledown and Belterra Park to set the schedule for shipping in to stable at the tracks as well as on dates for the resumption of live racing. Those will be available on the OSRC site as soon as they are determined as will specifics on how the safety protocols will be put into place and operate at each track.

Filed Under: Horse Racing Survival Tagged With: ,

Del Mar Meet could race with No Fans.

April 29, 2020 by Leave a Comment

A horse racing unthinkable could become reality

Gulfstream Park, Tampa Bay Downs and Oaklawn Park are the only three major tracks in action, and Los Alamitos is the only game in town in California.

Del Mar’s meet is scheduled to begin July 18, or 85 days from now. That’s a lot of time for different scenarios to play out as the world continues to combat the coronavirus. Del Mar officials are as perplexed as everyone else as to what the future holds.

But no fans? No hats? No beachgoers sipping margaritas in the paddock while watching the horses get saddled? Del Mar is normally one big party, but apparently not this year.

Harper is preparing for the unthinkable – a Del Mar meet with no fans.

“It depends what the landscape is looking like in June, and it’s going to be here before we know it,” he said. “I think the governor is right in saying don’t look for any large gatherings of people at sporting events this year…

Filed Under: Horse Racing News Tagged With: ,

New Zealand horse racing training to resume today?

April 28, 2020 by Leave a Comment

New Zealand’s Racing Industry Transition Agency (RITA) has announced initial approval for businesses and stakeholders in the country’s thoroughbred and harness racing sectors to return to work on 28 April.

Subject to meeting strict protocols and guidance established by each code, staff will be able recommence trialling and training, with preparations set to continue over the weekend.

The decision comes after the New Zealand government downgraded to Alert Level 3 of the novel coronavirus (Covid-19) alert system, which requires strict social distancing measures to be put in place, but allows for a partial re-opening of the economy. Horse racing in the country had been suspended since 25 March when Alert Level 4 – resulting in a nationwide lockdown – was put into effect.

However, RITA said it is yet to reach an agreement as to when greyhound racing could return, with officials in ..

Filed Under: Horse Racing News, International Horse Racing Tagged With: ,

Return of Horse Racing? Canterbury seeks to have horses, workers arrive May 4 – StarTribune.com

April 21, 2020 by Leave a Comment

The Shakopee track has requested a critical sector worker exemption that would allow horses and people to move into the stable area beginning May 4, even if the state’s stay-at-home order is extended past that date. The Department of Agriculture is reviewing Canterbury’s proposal, which includes detailed safety protocols to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. Andrew Offerman, Canterbury’s vice president of racing operations, said the department’s response “has been encouraging’’ and that a decision could be made early this week.

Canterbury postponed its original opening date of May 15, and Offerman expect …

Filed Under: Horse Racing News Tagged With: , , ,

British horse racing ready to figure out COVID-19 resumption plans

April 15, 2020 by Leave a Comment

Racing has been suspended until at least the end of April amid the coronavirus pandemic, with the last meetings in Britain at Wetherby and Taunton on March 17, both behind closed doors.

The government has indicated there will be no imminent lifting of the lockdown measures that have been in place in Britain from March 23, with the current restrictions including a ban on public gatherings of more than two people.

Horses continue to be trained and exercised. Racing is continuing in Hong Kong, Japan and Australia under strict biosecurity protocols.

The sport’s Resumption of Racing Group – established by the COVID19 Racing Industry Group – has been working with horsemen, racecourses and others on a plan to resume racing on the Flat behind closed doors as soon as that becomes possible.

A statement from RORG said the focus was on establishing criteria to determine the conditions under which racing could resume.

“The group continues to focus on a framework that will enable racing to be ready to resume on daily basis in a phased and controlled way as soon as possible,” the statement said.

Filed Under: Horse Racing News, International Horse Racing Tagged With: , , ,

Virtual Horse Race Raises Nearly $3 million for Health Workers

April 6, 2020 by Leave a Comment

“The Virtual Grand National has exceeded everyone’s wildest expectations. There was nothing virtual about the feel-good factor this race generated and the fantastic sum raised for a great cause,” said Simon Clare, representing betting business Coral[UK Bookmaker].

The 4.8 million people who watched the 30 minute Virtual Grand National on TV station ITV was around half what might have been expected for favorite Tiger Roll’s historic shot at a third consecutive win with last year’s real race attracting 9.6 million viewers.

The figure equated to a third of the viewing audience and was a massive leap from the 737,000 who watched the 2019 Virtual Grand National shown on ITV4 on the eve of the race.

Christian Williams, trainer of Potters Corner, embraced the Virtual Grand National.

“I’m delighted, it’s great and great to cheer everyone up in tough times – I think even people from outside of racing were tuned in. It was something for people to cheer on, people are stuck in their houses and it probably got a good viewing. It was something to watch together and have a bit of banter leading up to it.”

More about the 2020 Virtual Grand National

Filed Under: Horse Racing News, International Horse Racing Tagged With: , , , ,