thoroughbreds

Longtime Finger Lakes Clerk of Scales Jack Keller will be inducted into the track's Hall of Fame this Friday, the gaming establishment said in a press release on Wednesday. When Keller arrived at Finger Lakes outside of Farmington, New York in 1967, he figured he would spend a year working as a valet and then move on to another track for his next adventure in the world of racing. One year, however, became 59. "As it turned out, I never left," said Keller, who is in his 39th season as...

In the horse world, value is too often measured in miles ridden, ribbons won, or jumps cleared. Success is frequently defined by performance, competition, or potential. But there's an entire population of horses--older, injured, sensitive, or simply different--who remind us that value has nothing to do with being under saddle. These are the horses who work in-hand. They don't need to be ridden to be remarkable. They don't perform in the arena, but they show up in ways that are often quieter, more profound, and more enduring. And yet, too...

Last week, I witnessed firsthand the career-saving and even life-saving potential of the StrideSAFE sensor technology--and I feel a responsibility to share what happened. A stakes-level horse in our barn was flagged by StrideSAFE after showing a dramatic rise in injury risk in the right front leg over its two most recent races. A barn exam by our veterinarian showed no obvious lameness or inflammation. But based on the compelling StrideSAFE data, we took the next step and scheduled advanced imaging. The PET scan results--confirmed by two separate equine hospitals--showed...

In perhaps the most fitting end to a dramatic weekend of racing in upstate New York, Deterministic (Liam's Map) held on for a last-gasp victory in the GI Manhattan Stakes Sunday at Saratoga, giving Miguel Clement his first top-level victory just two weeks after taking over the stable following the passing of his father, longtime New York conditioner Christophe Clement. "I'm very fortunate and very lucky we have a great team. Very much Dad's legacy," Clement said. "It is beyond emotional, the last two weeks, to be honest with you....

Ag Bullet stamped her ticket to the GI Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint with a powerful victory over the boys in the GI Jaipur Stakes at Saratoga Sunday. The race had originally been scheduled for the loaded GI Belmont Stakes card, but was moved to Sunday after heavy rains hit the upstate track Saturday. The transfer allowed jockey John Velazquez to pick up the mount from Flavien Prat, who was in Kentucky to ride Final Gambit in the GIII Matt Winn Stakes Sunday. Sent off at 5-2, Ag Bullet broke in...

Godolphin homebred East Avenue got back to winning ways with a gutsy wire-to-wire victory in the GIII Matt Winn Stakes Sunday at Churchill Downs. Facing just three rivals, the 7-5 favorite stepped right out to the early lead and was tracked by Coal Battle and Burnham Square through an opening quarter in :24.41 and a half in :47.66. Burnham Square, Coal Battle and second choice Final Gambit lined up across the track behind him as East Avenue turned for home a length in front. Final Gambit's rally never materialized, leaving...

3rd-Saratoga, $100,000, Msw, 6-8, 2yo, 5 1/2f, 1:04.65, ft, 3 1/4 lengths. DIBLASI (g, 2, Win Win Win--One More Minute, by Istan) was introduced to the races with a runner-up finish at 4 1/2 furlongs on Apr. 13 at Keeneland. Aided by the slow starting rivals to his inside, this gelding broke well and worked his way down to the rail, sitting off an early quarter clicked in :22.28. While Diblasi bided his time, four rivals lined up at the top of the stretch, and with a seam opening down...

3rd-SAR, $100K, Msw, 2yo, 5 1/2f, 1:20 p.m. ET. MALUS (Into Mischief)--owned by Brookdale and trained by Todd Pletcher--is the second foal and first to make the races out of Lady Apple (Curlin). The winner of the GIII Fantasy Stakes, GIII Houston Ladies Classic and the GIII Iowa Derby, this dam was acquired for $1.2-million by Gerald Butler at the 2020 Fasig-Tipton Fall Mixed Sale. Lady Apple is a half-sister to SW Dr. Diamonds Prize (Pure Prize) and GSW American Apple (American Pharoah). TJCIS PPS

Francis X. "Buddy" Keegan, Jr., a New Jersey Racing Commissioner since 2006 and a breeder/owner who raced horses in the state since 1963, passed away on Thursday, June 5. He was 86. In addition to being a long-serving commissioner on the New Jersey Racing Commission, Keegan was president of the New Jersey Thoroughbred Breeders' Association, president of the New Jersey Horsemen's Association and was a patron of Monmouth Hunt. Keegan was also a member of the Thoroughbred Club of America, the Green Mountain Horse Association and the National Hunt Association....

Due to heavy rain impacting the Saratoga Springs region, the New York Racing Association, Inc. (NYRA) has moved Saturday's GI Jaipur Stakes and GI Resorts World Casino Manhattan Stakes to Sunday, according to a press release from the organization on Saturday morning. The Jaipur [ninth race], a "Win and You're In" for the GI Prevagen Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint, and the Manhattan [12th race], which will be contested at nine furlongs on the inner turf rather than the originally scheduled 1 3/16 miles on the Mellon turf, will be run...

'TDN Rising Star' Parchment Party (Constitution) slid on his duck boots and ran on nicely after making the GII Belmont Gold Cup as a 'main track only' entrant. With significant rainfall in the offing during the afternoon, the race was reduced one level when it was taken off the grass and cutback from two miles to one and three-quarters. Still, entries were prepared to chase the 'Golden Ticket' which offered the victor an automatic berth in the Nov. 4 running of the G1 Lexus Melbourne Cup worth more than AUD...

Woodbine cancelled its Friday races due to poor air quality from wildfires in the area, the racetrack said in a press release. Environment Canada's air quality index for Toronto was listed as 'High Risk' Friday and was expected to remain at that level throughout the day. As of Thursday, the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Center said 201 fires were burning in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Ontario, with half of them considered "out of control." Woodbine Entertainment's decision to cancel came through consultation with the HBPA and the Alcohol...