Los Angeles County
Angelenos In Action in partnership with Santa Anita Park are staging a donation drive to aid in fire relief efforts on Sunday, Feb. 23 at the racetrack. Those who choose to donate will be treated to a complimentary day at the races with free admission, free parking and a free racing program. Donations will be accepted between the hours of 10:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. in the Santa Anita parking lot. Access can be gained via Gate 5 off Huntington Drive or Gate 8 off Baldwin Avenue. Non-perishable food, water,...
Michael Willman, a former publicity director who worked at Santa Anita Park for nearly two decades, has sued the racetrack, its ownership, and several management executives, alleging that he was fired in March 2024 under the pretext of using inappropriate language when making an off-color joke to a subordinate, but that the "real reason" he was terminated was for refusing to participate in a purported cover-up of alleged mismanagement following a series of highly publicized horse fatalities that occurred at Santa Anita in 2019. According to the civil complaint filed...
Santa Anita opened its track Thursday morning to limited training--just joggers and gallopers for most of the morning. For the Santa Anita backstretch community, it was a slice of normality as the extent of the damage caused by the wildfires that have ripped across Los Angeles this week began to set in. "I've lived there half my life, almost. My daughter was born there. It's where she grew up. All of our memories together. I was just telling her, 'all of your medals and trophies for all the years you...
Beginning Friday, Apr. 2 and in keeping with the State of California's guidelines for large sporting event venues, Santa Anita Park will open to a limited number of fans. The opening is one day prior to the running of the GI Runhappy Santa Anita Derby. All tickets, which include an assigned seat, must be pre-purchased. For the time being, there will be no walk-up admissions, but that could be changed should COVID-19 numbers improve in Los Angeles County. To receive notifications on ticket sales as soon as they become available,...
Santa Anita Park was forced to close indefinitely Friday--making its announcement shortly before post time--on orders of the Los Angeles County Health Department in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Aidan Butler, acting executive director of California racing for the Stronach Group (TSG), confirmed via text that for now, training is unaffected at Santa Anita. The track issued the following statement: "In accordance with instructions received from Los Angeles County Health Department, Santa Anita Park will temporarily close for live racing effective immediately in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. "We apologize...