June, 2020 | Horse Racing Free Tips

Canadian Yearling Auctions Slated To Be Conducted In-Person

The yearling sales for the provincial divisions of the Canadian Thoroughbred Horse Society are expected to be conducted in a live-auction format in 2020, foregoing the option of going online, Canadian Thoroughbred reports.

The publication contacted CTHS representatives in Ontario, Alberta, British Columbia, and Manitoba, with each confirming that their “Plan A” is to hold their sales as normal, within their local and national guidelines in regards to COVID-19 safety. Like anything else during the pandemic, plans are subject to change depending on increased or decreased restrictions.

First on the calendar is the CTHS Manitoba Division sale, to be held at the Red River Exhibition Grounds in Winnipeg on Sunday, Aug. 23.

The Canadian Premier Sale in Ontario will be held Wednesday, Sept, 2 at the Woodbine Sales Pavilion in Toronto. Should Ontario not be fully re-open for business by the time of the sale, the auction will be held with limitations on group sizes, and guidelines on social distancing, mask wearing, and sanitary measures. Should the situation become especially dire, CTHS Ontario will consider expanded phone and online bidding options.

British Columbia's yearling sale will take place Tuesday, Sept. 8 at Thunderbird Show Park in Langley, though the group is still waiting on the province to reach the next phase of reopening before the sale can be conducted as planned. Regardless of where the province is in its recovery, the traditional preview parade for the sale has been canceled due to crowd size restrictions.

Rounding out the quartet is the CTHS Alberta sale in Friday, Sept. 18 at Westerner Park in Red Deer.

Berlin Tango Sold to HK Interests

Group 3 winner Berlin Tango (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}), a George Strawbridge homebred, has been sold to Hong Kong, Racing Post reported on Tuesday. In the care of trainer Andrew Balding, the newly gelded bay won at second asking at Ffos Las last July and was third in both the Listed Stonehenge S. at Salisbury in August and Doncaster’s Listed Flying Scotsman S. in September. He returned this March to fill the runner-up spot in the “Road to the Kentucky Derby” Conditions S. at Kempton before taking the G3 Unibet Classic Trial S. there on June 3. Berlin Tango was third in Royal Ascot’s G3 Hampton Court S. on June 17.

“He’s got the ideal profile for Hong Kong as he’s got a mile and a quarter and fast ground form and has been really progressive for Andrew Balding,” SackvilleDonald’s Alastair Donald, who brokered the deal, told Racing Post. “His form is stacking up well and hopefully he will be an ideal Hong Kong Derby type. He’s going to be going to Tony Cruz for a client of ours. He won’t run again here and has already been gelded. He’s currently chilling out and getting over his exertions, hopefully to ship to Hong Kong in mid-August.”

The fifth foal out of the Sadler’s Wells mare Fantasia (GB), a winner of the G3 Prestige S. and second in the G1 Meon Valley Stud Fillies’ Mile as a juvenile, Berlin Tango is also the third winner from his dam. Third in the G1 French 1000 Guineas and a winner of the G3 Nell Gwyn S. in the UK, Fantasia also landed the GIII Modesty H. Stateside and was runner-up in the GI Just a Game S. there. She is a half-sister to Irish Group 3 winner Pink Symphony (GB) (Montjeu {Ire}) and to the dam of the MGSW Western Hymn (GB) (High Chaparral {Ire}). Berlin Tango’s third dam is the European highweighted juvenile filly Blue Duster (Danzig), who won the G1 Cheveley Park S. in 1995.

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University Of Louisville, KEEP Release Second COVID-10 Kentucky Equine Business Impact Survey

The University of Louisville Equine Industry Program and the Kentucky Equine Education Project (KEEP) have released the second round of their COVID-19 Kentucky Equine Business Impact Survey. The survey will be shared with employers throughout Kentucky's horse industry and community to further capture the impacts of the pandemic on the Commonwealth's signature industry.

The second round of the COVID-19 Kentucky Equine Business Impact Survey will close July 13. Access the survey here.

The previous survey, conducted in May, showed that the pandemic resulted in Kentucky's equine businesses cutting costs and postponing capital improvement projects. However, the survey indicated that the vast majority of respondents did not have to lay off employees.

Since the last survey, horse racing has resumed in Kentucky, although without spectators, and historical horse racing facilities have reopened with limited capacity. The second round of the COVID-19 Kentucky Equine Business Impact Survey will capture how this is affecting the equine businesses across the state. Churchill Downs announced last week that the Kentucky Oaks and Kentucky Derby, scheduled for Sept. 4 and Sept. 5, will occur with a limited number of spectators.

Survey participants will not be identified in the published results.

“Since we completed our first survey in May, the state has lifted some of the restrictions on the horse industry, which should provide a boost to equine business across the state,” said Elisabeth Jensen, KEEP's executive vice president who oversees the daily operations of the organization. “However, we have yet to see the impact of how the pandemic is affecting horse sales and what that means for Kentucky's equine economy. We hope that this second round of our survey can, when combined with the data from our May survey, paint a clearer picture of the challenges the industry will face.”

“The UofL Equine Industry Program educates and trains the next generation of leaders for Kentucky's signature industry,” said Sean Beirne, director of the UofL Equine Industry Program in the College of Business. “The COVID-19 Kentucky Equine Business Impact Survey provides us with an incredible up-to-the-moment view of the challenges that the industry will face in the coming years. In addition to helping inform policy-makers on the status of the industry, we can also use this data to prepare our students for the challenges of the industry they will be entering.”

The Kentucky Equine Education Project is a not-for-profit grassroots organization created in 2004 to preserve, promote and protect Kentucky's multi-breed horse industry.

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A Shocking Situation: Show Jumper Accused Of Using Electrified Spurs

An accusation has been made alleging that show jumper Andy Kocher used electrified spurs in international competition. The governing body of horse sport, the Fédération Equestre Internationale, says they are looking into the matter, reports The Chronicle of the Horse.

The claim, which was brought by an unnamed source, alleges that Kocher used the spurs on Fashion V during the $36,000 Welcome Speed Stake at the 2019 National Horse Show at the Kentucky Horse Park. In photos of the event, Kocher appears to be holding a device with a button.

The button is connected to a wire that runs up the sleeve of the rider's shirt and then down his back to a box that provides a charge; the wire then runs down the pant legs and out through a hole in each boot to the spur.

The U.S. Equestrian Federation is also investigating the claims. Both entities are tasked with protecting the welfare and safety of horses competing in sanctioned events.

Read more at The Chronicle of the Horse.

The post A Shocking Situation: Show Jumper Accused Of Using Electrified Spurs appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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