NYRA Releases Belmont Spring/Summer Stakes Schedule

The stakes schedule for the 48-day Belmont Park spring/summer meet will feature 59 total stakes races worth $16.95 million in purses. The spring/summer meet will begin Thursday, Apr. 22 and continue through Sunday, July 11.

On Feb. 10, New York Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo announced that live sports and entertainment venues will be permitted to re-open to a limited number of spectators beginning Feb. 23. In order for qualifying venues to re-open, those sites must gain New York State Department of Health approval and limit the number of spectators to 10% of seated capacity. All attendees must present a negative COVID-19 test taken within 72 hours of the event and adhere to health and safety requirements, including mandatory facial coverings and social distancing.

NYRA is reviewing the newly announced guidelines to determine how they apply to Aqueduct, where the first floor is currently the site of a New York State COVID-19 vaccination center, and to Belmont Park and Saratoga Race Course.

The Belmont spring/summer meet will offer 11 Grade I contests and seven races with purses of $700,000 or higher, with four of those contests coming during the three-day GI Belmont S. Racing Festival from Thursday, June 3 through Saturday, June 5. The festival will encompass 17 total stakes, including eight Grade Is on Belmont S. Day, capped by the $1.5-million “Test of the Champion” in the 1 1/2-mile final leg of the Triple Crown.

In addition to the 153rd running of the Belmont S. June 5, that day's card will include three Breeders' Cup “Win and You're In” qualifiers: the GI Metropolitan (Dirt Mile); the GI Ogden Phipps (Distaff); and the GI Jaipur (Turf Sprint).

The blockbuster Belmont S. Day card will also feature the GI Manhattan; the GI Acorn; the GI Longines Just a Game; the GI Woody Stephens; and the GII Brooklyn.

The Stars and Stripes Racing Festival returns Saturday, July 10 and features a trio of graded stakes headlined by the opening legs of NYRA's Turf Triple Series. Launched in 2019, the Turf Triple returns with a pair of races earning Grade I status, featuring the $1-million Belmont Derby Invitational and the Belmont Oaks Invitational.

Click here for the full 2021 Belmont Park spring/summer stakes schedule.

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Cuomo: New York Sports Venues Can Reopen Conditionally

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced that sports arenas and stadiums with a capacity of better than 10,000 can re-open with limited spectators. The first event open to spectators in the state will be the National Basketball Association contest between the Sacramento Kings and Brooklyn Nets at the Barclay Center Feb. 23.

The opening of venues will follow the Buffalo Bills pilot program, deemed an “unparalleled success” by Cuomo, following guidelines including Department of Health approval for venues and events, capacity limitations, testing requirements, mandatory face coverings, temperature checks and assigned, socially distanced seating. There will be a 10% capacity limit in arenas and stadiums.

Officials at the New York Racing Association welcomed the news and will explore their options over the next weeks and months.

“Sports and entertainment venues in New York are responsible for tens of thousands of jobs and billions of dollars in economic impact. NYRA applauds Governor Cuomo for taking action today to get New Yorkers back to work and fans back in seats,” said Patrick McKenna, Senior Director, Communications and Media Relations for NYRA.

“NYRA is reviewing the newly announced guidelines to determine how they apply to Aqueduct Racetrack, where the first floor is currently the site of a New York State COVID-19 vaccination center, and to Belmont Park and Saratoga Race Course.

“NYRA has been conducting live racing without spectators in attendance since June 3 and we are eager to welcome racing fans back to our venues at the appropriate time and with the approval of the New York State Gaming Commission.”

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Saratoga Releases 2020 Stakes Schedule; Travers Set For Aug. 8

The 2020 summer meet at historic Saratoga Race Course will feature 71 stakes worth $14.45 million, encompassing 39 graded stakes and 18 Grade 1s from Thursday, July 16 through Monday, September 7.

“We're thrilled to be racing at Saratoga this summer, and we thank Governor Andrew Cuomo for his support and the support of horsemen who have worked with us to navigate the many challenges,” NYRA President and CEO Dave O'Rourke said. “While this will be anything but a traditional Saratoga season, we hope to provide a semblance of normalcy for both the local community as well as racing fans across the country.”

Under current New York state guidelines, Saratoga Race Course will open on July 16 without spectators in attendance. The 40-day meet will feature at least one stakes race every live racing day, highlighted by the 151st renewal of the Grade 1, $1 million Runhappy Travers on August 8 and the Grade 1, $750,000 Whitney on August 1, as the anchors of two of the biggest racing days in North America.

After opening weekend, racing will be conducted five days a week, Wednesdays through Sundays.

Whitney Day, set for Saturday, August 1, will feature three Grade 1 events, led by the historic Whitney, a handicap at 1 1/8 miles with an automatic berth to the Breeders' Cup Classic on November 7 at Keeneland on the line.

The card is bolstered by the Grade 1, $500,000 Personal Ensign, a “Win and You're In” qualifier for the Breeders' Cup Distaff in November; and the Grade 1, $300,000 H. Allen Jerkens Memorial presented by Runhappy for 3-year-olds sprinting seven furlongs.

The stakes-laden card also includes the Grade 2, $250,000 Bowling Green for 4-year-olds and up on the turf and the $200,000 Caress, a 5 ½-furlong turf sprint for older fillies and mares.

The Runhappy Travers, traditionally contested at the end of August, will be held this year on August 8 to properly account for the schedule adjustments and overall calendar for 3-year-olds in training due to the health and safety measures instituted to mitigate risk and combat the spread of COVID-19.

The “Mid-Summer Derby” will still be contested at 1 1/4 miles for the country's most talented 3-year-olds and is one of three Grade 1s on the day, joining the $300,000 Ballerina for fillies and mares 3-years-old and up going seven furlongs in a “Win and You're In” qualifier for the Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Sprint.

The day will also see sophomore fillies compete in the prestigious Grade 1, $300,000 Longines Test at seven furlongs, with the card bolstered by the Grade 3, $200,000 Troy, a 5 ½-furlong turf sprint for older males, and the Grade 3, $150,000 Waya , a 1 ½-mile turf route for older fillies and mares.

The Saratoga meet will commence on Thursday, July 16 with a strong Opening Day card fortified by the Grade 3, $100,000 Peter Pan. The 1 1/8-miles test for sophomores was moved from its traditional home at Belmont Park to the Spa. Also on tap for the Saratoga lid-lifter is the Grade 3, $100,000 Schuylerville for juvenile fillies going six furlongs.

The meet's first Grade 1 will be on the opening Saturday, July 18, when the $350,000 Coaching Club American Oaks for sophomore fillies going 1 1/8 miles takes center stage, supported by the Grade 2, $150,000 National Museum of Racing Hall of Fame.

A pair of graded stakes feature on Saturday, July 25, topped by the Grade 1, $250,000 Alfred G. Vanderbilt, a handicap for 3-year-olds and up going six furlongs, and including the Grade 2, $200,000 Ballston Spa for older fillies and mares on the turf.

New to the Saratoga stakes schedule are a pair of New York-bred races for older grass horses with the Lubash set for July 22 and the Dayatthespa for fillies and mares on July 29, both offering a purse of $85,000 for the 1 1/16-mile turf tests.

The $100,000 Perfect Sting, a 1 1/16-mile turf test for older fillies and mares, moves from Belmont to August 14 at the Spa.

The Grade 1, $500,000 Alabama for 3-year-old fillies going 1 ¼ miles is slated for Saturday, August 15, which will also see the second running of the $500,000 Saratoga Derby, part of the Turf Triple Series for 3-year-olds. Its filly counterpart, the $500,000 Saratoga Oaks for sophomores, will be run the next day.

Saturday, August 22 will run the Grade 1, $400,000 Fourstardave, a handicap for 3-year-olds and up going one mile on the turf. The Grade 1, $500,000 Diana for fillies going 1 1/8 miles on the turf will be the feature on Sunday, August 23.
A pair of stakes for sophomore state-breds originally scheduled at Aqueduct Racetrack, the NYSSS Times Square and NYSSS Park Avenue, will now be contested at Saratoga on August 27 and September 3 respectively, both offering a purse of $100,000 for the 6 1/2-furlong main-track sprints.

The Grade 1, $300,000 Forego, presented by America's Best Racing, a seven-furlong sprint for 4-year-olds and up, shares center stage on Saratoga's penultimate Saturday on August 29, with the day also offering exciting racing action with the Grade 1, $500,000 Sword Dancer, a 1 ½-mile turf route for 4-year-olds and up that serves as a “Win and You're In” qualifier for the Breeders' Cup Turf.

The final weekend of the 2020 Saratoga meet will have six graded stakes. Four of those contests will run Saturday, September 5, led by the Grade 1, $500,000 Woodward, a handicap for 3-year-olds and up going 1 ¼ miles. A trio of Grade 2 races will make for a strong card, including the $150,000 Jim Dandy for sophomores at 1 1/8 miles; the $200,000 Prioress for sophomore fillies going six furlongs; and the $200,000 Glens Falls for older fillies and mares competing at 1 3/8 miles on the turf.

Sunday, September 6 will be the date for the Grade 1, $250,000 Spinaway for sophomore fillies going seven furlongs, along with the Grade 2, $150,000 Honorable Miss, a handicap for fillies and mares 3-years-old and up at six furlongs.

The $250,000 Runhappy Hopeful, at seven furlongs for juvenile sprinters as the traditional final Grade 1 of the Saratoga meet, brings the curtain down on Closing Day Monday, September 7.

DATE
RACE
GR
PURSE
AGE
DISTANCE
Thurs., July 16
Schuylerville
III
100,000
F2YO
6 F
Thurs., July 16
Peter Pan
III
100,000
3YO
1 1/8
Fri., July 17
Shine Again
85,000
F&M 4&UP
7 F
Fri., July 17
De La Rose
85,000
F&M 4&UP
1 Mile (Turf)
Sat., July 18
Coaching Club American Oaks
I
350,000
F3YO
1 1/8
Sat., July 18
National Museum of Racing Hall Of Fame
II
150,000
3YO
1 1/8 (Turf)
Sun., July 19
Lake Placid
II
150,000
F3YO
1 1/8 (Turf)
Wed., July 22
Lubash (NYB)
85,000
4&UP
1 1/16 (Turf)
Thurs., July 23
A. P. Smithwick (Steeplechase)
I
100,000
4&UP
2 1/16 (Turf)
Thurs., July 23
NYSSS Statue Of Liberty Division
100,000
F3YO
1 1/16 (Turf)
Fri., July 24
Quick Call
III
100,000
3YO
5 1/2 (Turf)
Sat., July 25
Alfred G. Vanderbilt (Hdcp.)
I
250,000
3&UP
6 F
Sat., July 25
Ballston Spa
II
200,000
F&M 4&UP
1 1/16 (Turf)
Sun., July 26
Bernard Baruch (Hdcp.)
II
150,000
3&UP
1   1/16 (Turf)
Wed., July 29
Dayatthespa (NYB)
85,000
F&M 4&UP
1   1/16 (Turf)
Thurs., July 30
John Morrissey Hdcp (NYB)
85,000
3&UP
7 F
Fri., July 31
Coronation Cup
100,000
F3YO
5 1/2 (Turf)
Sat., Aug 1
Whitney (BC)
I
750,000
4&UP
1 1/8
Sat., Aug 1
Personal Ensign (BC)
I
500,000
F&M 4&UP
1 1/8
Sat., Aug 1
H. Allen Jerkens Memorial
I
300,000
3YO
7 F
Presented by Runhappy
Sat., Aug 1
Bowling Green
II
250,000
4&UP
1 3/8 (Turf)
Sat., Aug 1
Caress
200,000
F&M 4&UP
5 1/2 F (Turf)
Sun., Aug 2
Birdstone
100,000
4&UP
1 3/4
Wed., Aug 5
Summer Colony
85,000
F&M 4&UP
1 1/8
Thurs., Aug 6
NYSSS Cab Calloway Division
100,000
3YO
1 1/16 (Turf)
Fri., Aug 7
Saratoga Special
II
150,000
2YO
6 F
Sat., Aug 8
Runhappy Travers
I
1,000,000
3YO
1 1/4
Sat., Aug 8
Ballerina Hdcp. (BC)
I
300,000
F&M 3&UP
7 F
Sat., Aug 8
Longines Test
I
300,000
F3YO
7 F
Sat., Aug 8
Troy
III
200,000
4&UP
5 1/2 F (Turf)
Sat., Aug 8
Waya
III
150,000
F&M 4&UP
1 1/2 (Turf)
Sun., Aug 9
Alydar
85,000
4&UP
1 1/8
Wed., Aug 12
Adirondack
II
150,000
F2YO
6 1/2 F
Thurs., Aug 13
Union Avenue Hdcp (NYB)
85,000
F&M 3&UP
7 F
Fri., Aug 14
Perfect Sting
100,000
F&M 4&UP
1 1/16 (Turf)
Sat., Aug 15
Saratoga Derby Invitational
500,000
3YO
1 3/16 (Turf)
Sat., Aug 15
Alabama
I
500,000
F3YO
1 1/4
Sun., Aug 16
Saratoga Oaks Invitational
500,000

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