Churchill Downs

Churchill Downs has been cleared by Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear to open its backstretch area May 11 so long as the track adheres to enhanced pandemic precautions approved by the state. Beshear announced the clearance Wednesday at his daily COVID-19 video press conference as part of a phased-in reopening for various state industries. Churchill followed up about an hour later with a press release that included specifics pertinent to horsemen. Neither Beshear nor the track pinpointed an exact date for the return of live racing. But the Churchill release stated...

Secretariat has been established as the horse to beat in Saturday's Kentucky Derby: Triple Crown Showdown by odds maker Mike Battaglia. The Kentucky Derby: Triple Crown Showdown is an animated race created by Inspired Entertainment Inc. using computer-generated imagery that will feature the 13 past Triple Crown winners in a 1 1/4-mile race at Churchill Downs. The virtual race will air around 5:45 p.m. as part of NBC's broadcast of "The First Saturday In May: American  Pharoah's Run to the Triple Crown" Saturday from 3-6 p.m. Secretariat landed post position...

With the GI Kentucky Derby postponed until September, NBC will present a special show Saturday--the traditional "first Saturday in May"--headlined by American Pharoah's Kentucky Derby win five years ago. The show begins at 3 p.m. ET. The three-hour The First Saturday In May: American Pharoah's Run to the Triple Crown will look back at American Pharoah's down-to-the-wire victory in the 141st Kentucky Derby, while introducing new stories and content. In addition, the broadcast will highlight Churchill Downs' first-ever virtual horse race--The Kentucky Derby: Triple Crown Showdown, a computer-simulated version of...

The Week in Review, by T.D. Thornton The COVID-19 virus has quarantined this week's GI Kentucky Derby, which has been rescheduled for Sept. 5. The last time America's most famous horse race got pushed off its traditional first Saturday in May calendar spot was 1945, when the nation was embroiled in World War II. It's impossible to make accurate comparisons between a global conflict and a pandemic that are happening 75 years apart. But sifting through archived news clippings about how horse racing endured and eventually overcame that long, government-mandated...

It takes a lot of prospecting, a lot of false leads, a lot of patient drilling. When you do strike oil, however, the fulfilment of a single moment will suddenly indemnify all the barren endeavour in between. And that's equally true whether you are a geologist, trying to read the complexion of the land above mineral deposits; or a horseman, trying to find that latent seam of class beneath the surface hints of pedigree and conformation. Al Stall, Jr., having filled both roles in his time, recognizes the analogy. "Oh,...

For the team at the Backside Learning Center at Churchill Downs, this is normally their favorite time of year. Backstretch workers return home from working in warmer locations over the winter, families are reunited, and there's a general sense of community and solidarity. The Kentucky Derby is just a few weeks away and fundraising is in overdrive. But this year looks quite different. For starters, there is a much smaller community to serve. While the Backside Learning Center normally serves about 1,000 workers this time of year along with their...

As a result of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, Churchill Downs announced it will delay the reopening of its stable areas at both Churchill Downs Racetrack and the auxiliary training center Trackside to at least Tuesday, May 5. The opening of the 2020 Spring Meet, originally scheduled for Apr. 25, will also been postponed and a determination of the exact starting date will be made closer to the opening of the backstretch. Churchill Downs officials are in ongoing discussions with state and local officials and public health experts about reopening its...

Churchill Downs will host a day-long at-home Kentucky Derby party in an effort to raise $2 million for COVID-19 emergency relief efforts. With this season's Kentucky Derby postponed until Sept. 5 due to the coronavirus pandemic, a special broadcast will be aired on NBC May 2, from 3 to 6 p.m. EST. The telecast will feature American Pharoah's 2015 Kentucky Derby in addition to Churchill Downs' first ever virtual horse race--The Kentucky Derby: Triple Crown Showdown, a computer-simulated version of a race. "For many fans around the country, the first...

A pair of workers at Turfway Park--one backstretch worker and one track employee--have tested positive for coronavirus in recent weeks, according to a report first published by Blood-Horse. Turfway's parent company Churchill Downs ended the Turfway meet--which had been being conducted without spectators--three days earlier than scheduled last month, citing Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear's "Healthy at Home" executive order. Churchill Downs, Inc. spokesperson Tonya Abeln confirmed to the TDN Wednesday that the ill backstretch worker was symptomatic more than two weeks ago and was subsequently hospitalized and tested positive for...

Autumn Hill Farms Racing Stables Inc.'s Bobby's Wicked One (Speightstown), who was eased home last of 11 as the 9-2 fourth choice after attending a hot early pace in Saturday's GIII Count Fleet Sprint H. at Oaklawn, has emerged none the worse for wear from the effort, trainer Al Stall, Jr. said Monday. "Not so far, he's had a couple of days off, but he goes back to the track [Tuesday]," the conditioner said when asked if anything came to hand post-race. "He will throw in a clunker sometimes. He...

Damon Thayer, a former Breeders' Cup executive who is now the majority leader of the Kentucky Senate, continued to beat the drum Thursday for a return of racing in his state. In an interview with the TDN, he said he sees no practical reason why racing, without spectators in the stands, cannot resume within the next few weeks and warned that keeping the tracks closed indefinitely would create serious economic problems for the sport. "Staggering and potentially cataclysmic," he said when asked to predict the impact of racing in Kentucky...

Wells Bayou (Lookin at Lucky) returned to the work tab for the first time since his Mar. 21 GII Louisiana Derby victory with a four-furlong drill in :49.80 (32/56) at Oaklawn Park Monday. With the GI Kentucky Derby postponed until September and no new date yet released for the GI Preakness S., the bay colt could make his next start in the May 2 GI Arkansas Derby. "We'd love to win the Arkansas Derby," co-owner Lance Gasaway told the Oaklawn Park media team after watching Wells Bayou train Saturday morning....