Jodie Vella-Gregory

Edited Press Release Two students from California Polytechnic University Pomona (Cal Poly Pomona) studying in its Department of Animal and Veterinary Sciences Equine Studies program recently joined Santa Anita Park as interns through an ongoing partnership between the famed racetrack and world-renowned university. Amaranta Torres, a senior, and third-year student Keira Roberts--both majoring in Animal Science, pre-veterinary at Cal Poly Pomona--were selected to intern at Santa Anita during the spring semester. They started Jan. 30 and will complete a minimum of 60 hours through the end of April working in...

Tomorrow's Front Runners is a new TDN series spotlighting young people who got involved with horse racing through Amplify Horse Racing and are now pursing careers in the industry. Amplify is a 501 (c)(3) organization dedicated to amplifying education, mentorship and career opportunities for young people in the Thoroughbred industry. Paola Castro was introduced to the world of horse racing two years ago on a visit to Churchill Downs. After touring the backside and the Derby Museum, she swore that she would be back again someday to watch the Kentucky...

Guests Andrew Offerman of NYRA, Cathy Shircliff of Churchill Downs, Del Mar's David Jerkens and 1/ST Racing's Jodie Vella-Gregory, joined the latest installment of the OwnerView webinar series Apr. 8 to discuss how they ensure owners take center stage in their operations, according to a Friday press release from The Jockey Club of America who serves as one of the hosts. The panel discussed a myriad of topics related to how to improve an owner's experience at the racetrack, and the group addressed the all-important issue of how to attract...

Sabrina Nakasone, a senior and Leslie Batista, a junior, were selected for this year's class have been selected to join Santa Anita as interns through an ongoing partnership with California State Polytechnic University, Pomona (Cal Poly Pomona), studying in the Department of Animal and Veterinary Sciences Equine Studies program. Both are majoring in Animal Science Pre-Veterinary with a minor in Equine Studies at Cal Poly Pomona. The internship program, which began last year, is designed to provide students with work experience in the Thoroughbred racing industry with a focus on...

The Third Annual Horse Racing Women's Summit, set for Sept. 25-27 in Arcadia, California, will include two panel discussions and a host of other events, the conference planners said in a release on Friday afternoon. FanDuel TV's Christina Blacker will emcee the event which begins at the Le Meridien Hotel with a welcome address hosted by Catherine Iste, Chief Administrative Officer of the Los Angeles Chargers. After the opening address, panel discussions include: Panel 1: Peak Performance, moderated by Britney Eurton, NBC & Amazon Prime Zoe Cadman, XBTV and 1/ST...

Tickets are now on sale for the 2024 Horse Racing Women's Summit (HRWS) Annual Summit and HRWS Events. Events at Keeneland (Apr. 18) and at Saratoga (July 23) kick off the year, all leading up to the third annual Horse Racing Women's Summit at Santa Anita Sept. 25-26. There will be another gathering prior to the Breeders' Cup at Del Mar Oct. 31. Attendance at each event is limited and it is expected that events will sell out. Click here to purchase tickets. "Coming into our third year of the...

Tickets are on sale for the second Horse Racing Women's Summit (HRWS), scheduled for Sept. 27-29 at Santa Anita Park. Reagan Cannon, an international leadership speaker and coach with over 20 years of experience at Fortune 15 companies, will deliver the keynote address. Tickets for the three-day summit, which are limited and sold out last year, can be purchased at WomeninRacingSummit.com. "In our second annual HRWS, we look forward to building on the momentum from 2022 with robust programming and an impactful lineup of speakers and panelists," said Jodie Vella-Gregory...

Richard Lamb has been elected the new board chair of the Retired Racehorse Project and Jodie Vella-Gregory has been elected the organization's new vice chair. The RRP also added new board members Dr. Shannon Reed and Sissy Wickes. Lamb, the former vice chair, has stepped into the leadership role to take the place of outgoing chair, Sue Smith. Lamb begins his service as chair at the beginning of his second term on the RRP board, having joined in January of 2020 after several years officiating at the Thoroughbred Makeover. "Having...

The inaugural edition of the Horse Racing Women's Summit (HRWS) is just three weeks away and the planning committee behind the buzzed-about event is so enthusiastic about spreading the word that they say down with the TDN to share how the multi-day summit is gaining national attention and discuss why it is important that the event will be bringing in women from all facets of the industry. "The Horse Racing Women's Summit is designed to empower, connect and remove barriers in leadership in racing," said Jodie Vella-Gregory, a member of...