New York Racing Association

The Thoroughbred Safety Coalition has added eight medical and operational reforms to its platform. The group's Steering Committee, made up of executives from the Breeders' Cup, Churchill Downs Incorporated, Del Mar Thoroughbred Club, Keeneland Association Inc., the New York Racing Association (NYRA) and The Stronach Group, voted unanimously to adopt the reforms with the ultimate goal of uniform implementation across racing jurisdictions. The following reforms have been added to the Coalition's platform: Strengthen race entry and eligibility requirements; Work with state racing commissions to apply racing regulations surrounding prohibited substances...

It's racing during the frigid winter months at a blue-collar racetrack, so Aqueduct may not always be the easiest sell. But New York Racing Association (NYRA) officials are expecting a strong five-month run once the track opens Nov. 6, counting on robust purses to convince owners and trainers to choose the Big A over options like Gulfstream and Oaklawn. Typically, purses decrease once the fall meet at Belmont is over. Racing at Aqueduct handles less than it does at Belmont and there is a drop off in the quality. But...

Jeffrey Cannizzo, Executive Director of New York Thoroughbred Breeders, Inc. (NYTB), will be leaving the organization Jan. 1 to pursue a newly created opportunity with the New York Racing Association, Inc. (NYRA) as Senior Director of Government Affairs. He has served as Executive Director of NYTB since 2008. Previously, he had a successful 10-year career, working in business development and management consulting for Lockheed Martin, Dell and Microsoft. "For almost 13 years along with our board of directors, Jeff has been instrumental in navigating the most challenging times for New...

New York has lagged other racing states in addressing changes to whip use designed to be more humane to Thoroughbreds. But not being an early adopter of controversial new rules can sometimes be an advantage, because regulators are able to assess what is and isn't working in other jurisdictions before making potentially radical modifications to long-standing practices. That was the tone of discussion during the Oct. 19 teleconference meeting of the New York State Gaming Commission (NYSGC), which conducted what amounted to a 2 1/4-hour opinion-gathering dialogue on whether or...

FOX Sports will present live coverage and analysis of Sunday's G1 Qatar Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe, the New York Racing Association announced Friday. Sunday's broadcast will air on FS1 from 9:30-11 a.m. ET, with the Arc featuring 6-year-old mare Enable (GB) (Nathaniel {Ire}) for a record third win in the race. Coverage will also include the G1 Prix de l'Opera Longines for fillies and mares 3-years-old and up at 1 1/4 miles on the turf. Both races are part of the Breeders' Cup "Win and You're In" Challenge Series,...

America's Day at the Races returns this week on FOX Sports and MSG Networks to provide coverage and analysis of racing from Belmont Park, Churchill Downs and Delaware Park, the New York Racing Association announced Wednesday. After a summer hiatus, the show resumes Thursday with live racing from Churchill Downs and Delaware Park, before transitioning Friday-opening day of the 27-day Belmont Park fall meet--for complete coverage of this weekend's live racing from Belmont Park and Churchill Downs. Produced by NYRA in partnership with FOX Sports, the acclaimed national telecast airs...

Richard "Richie" Brosseau, the head starter at the NYRA tracks from 2003 to 2007, passed away Sept. 5. He was suffering from a number of illnesses, including leukemia. A native of Montreal, Brosseau started out in harness racing before coming to the New York Thoroughbred tracks in the early 1970s. He accepted a job as an assistant starter in 1976 before working his way up to head position. He retired in 2007. In 2011, he became a U.S. citizen. "He was a really, really good guy," said Raymond DeStefano, who...

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - Even without spectators on the grounds, the 152nd summer of racing in Saratoga produced a total betting handle of $702.5 million that was remarkably close to last year's record figure of $705.3 million. The daily average handle for the 40-day meet in 2020 was $17.6 million and the daily average handle for the weather-shortened 39-day meet in 2019 was $18.1 million. The season concluded Monday as quietly as it began July 16, with a program conducted without fans, in compliance with New York State's COVID-19 protocols...

Luis Grandison, a Black Latino who is a native of Panama and who served as the New York Racing Association's Spanish language race caller from 2014 through March 2020, has sued NYRA claiming he was discriminated against because he was paid less than white Americans who call the races in English. According to a suit filed Tuesday in Brooklyn Federal Court, Grandison was paid $60,000 a year. The suit claims that long-time NYRA announcer Tom Durkin earned $440,000 a year before retiring in 2014 and that his replacement, Larry Collmus,...

Saratoga's first post time Friday has been pushed back to 2:10 p.m. ET due to an ongoing technical issue with AmTote, the New York Racing Association's tote system provider. Friday's card, which was slated to begin at 1:10 p.m., includes the Skidmore S., a 5 1/2-furlong turf sprint for 2-year-olds which will be run as the third race.

For the third consecutive meeting over a seven-month span, the New York State Gaming Commission (NYSGC) Monday again declined to take up any discussion of whip rule reform. Possible changes to whipping rules were initially brought up at the NYSGC's December 2019 meeting. Since that time, a number of other major racing jurisdictions--including California, Kentucky, Maryland and New Jersey--have all advanced changes in whip rules at the commission level that are designed to be more humane to horses. Near the conclusion of the 14-minute teleconference meeting July 27, commissioner Peter...

All-sources handle for Saratoga's 2020 opening weekend totaled $80,325,660, a 9.4% increase over last year's opening weekend, which generated $73,441,101 from all sources. Saratoga's recently completed opening weekend, Thursday through Sunday, corresponds with the four-day period in 2019 from Thursday, July 11 to Sunday, July 14.