Inaugural Horse Racing Women’s Summit: Women at `Tipping Point’ in the Sport

Given the current snail's pace at which the gender gap is meaningfully shrinking, it'll take more than 250 years for women to reach professional parity with men–just two-and-a-half short centuries, for those who think in blocks.

That was the daunting statistic which set the stage at the beginning of the inaugural Horse Racing Women's Summit at Santa Anita Thursday, a two-day event designed to nurture the abilities of women already involved in the sport and engender new talent to follow after the sport's current batch of female leaders.

And what was the over-arching takeaway? Greater mutual support among the sport's female participants, and the fostering of a culture of mentorship among male leaders towards their female peers.

In a panel titled “Thriving Through Challenges,” Dora Delgado, executive vice president and chief racing officer of the Breeders' Cup, described the business that she entered in 1983 as a lot of Khaki and blue blazer-clad men sitting around the boardroom table resistant to change.

“And that hasn't changed much since,” said Delgado, adding that, despite her credentials—she was anointed last year on the Sports Business Journal's prestigious “game changer” list, for example—she still feels the need to prove her qualifications “over and over and over again.”

Part of the problem is nepotism, she and others said.

The Kentucky Blueblood aristocracy, it “runs deep,” Delgado said. “If you're not born to it, it takes a bit of work to get accepted.” That cycle needs to be disrupted, she added.

“'This guy's really great—I play golf with him. He's got a son who needs a job. Where can we fit him in?'” said Delgado, rhetorically replaying what she described as familiar conversations across racetrack boardrooms.

Dora's response? “Nowhere.”

Christa Marrillia, vice president and chief marketing officer at Keeneland, detailed the female dress code for employees at the track when she first joined in 2003, which excluded open-toed shoes and pants.

While those restrictions have since lifted, changing the work-place culture for women in the sport has proven tougher, she said.

“I would sleep with my cell-phone by my pillow,” explained Marrillia, describing herself as a workaholic who never took breaks—a common refrain among the presenters, all of whom described the challenges of maintaining a healthy work-home life balance, especially those with families and children.

What changed Marrillia's attitude, she said, was witnessing her behavior rub off on her team, some of them young mothers. “I was like, 'wow, I'm creating a bad thing here.'”

She has since altered the culture for her employees at Keeneland, she said, for the better. “I do feel like we're at a tipping point,” she added, about the role of women in the game.

“I'm still really good at my job, but I'm not going to miss the birthday parties. I'm going to sleep,” she said. “I'm not going to answer an email at two in the morning.”

Dionne Benson, chief veterinary officer at 1/ST RACING, discussed the importance of male higher-ups in the sport championing their female peers.

Benson told the story of how, when on a work call, two men proceeded to disparage her, mistakenly thinking they were muted.

“Then Aidan found out about it and called all their bosses,” she said, referring to Aidan Butler, 1/ST RACING's chief operating officer.

There's also the honey-pot approach.

“What my boss finds interesting, I find fascinating,” joked Rikki Tanenbaum, 1/ST GAMING's newly minted chief commercial officer and president.

The afternoon was broken into two panels, the latter of which turned their gaze inwards towards matters of integrity—or what Del Mar Thoroughbred Club board member, Marie Moretti, called “intentional integrity.”

A key area of focus appeared to be the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA), designed to provide parity in the metering out of offenses, among many other things.

“You will know what you're going to get,” said Moretti, advocating the Act's uniform rules, if not only to improve public perception of the sport. “Perception is reality in the modern world.”

Optics was a common theme. “I couldn't even get my horsey girlfriends to the track—they thought it was a cruel sport,” said Bo Derek, saying that when she took over as a California Horse Racing Board (CHRB) commissioner, the industry was in the state of flux due to problems associated with drug misuse, whip abuse and the ill-fated switch to synthetic tracks.

“I'm really encouraged. The fanbase is up, the gaming is good,” said Derek, about the current state of California's racing industry.

“I don't think it's something we can be quiet about any more,” said Shannon Kelly, executive director of the Jockey Club's Safety Net Foundation, zeroing in on the public's growing awareness towards the vast human involvement in the sport.

“What other industry has to have a charity for its workers in times of need?” Kelly said, highlighting the number of food distribution centers that feed the nation's backstretches.

All panelists advocated for financial self-sustainability to fund each aspect of the industry, from racehorse aftercare to the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund.

“If you're entering into the sport,” said Kelly, “you should be aware of the costs that are associated with `putting on the show.'”

The earlier panel looked outwards, each of the four speakers tasked with marketing and growing the sport to a world not forged upon racing's gristmill.

“We've all got one goal but we're all coming at it from different ways,” said Jodie Vella Gregory, director of the office of innovation at 1/ST RACING.

“Everyone in here has an idea,” she added. “We should all be taking to one another.”

Taking aim at horse racing's natural impulse to quickly bin new ideas if they fail to immediately take off, she extolled the virtues of perseverance, pointing to the evolution of the Pegasus World Cup—what originated a big-pot attraction first and foremost, but which has transformed into something of a place-holder on the social calendar.

That, and “we need to expand outside the bounds of our community,” Vella Gregory said.

Running with that theme, Lindsay Schanzer, senior producer at NBC Sports, warned of another of racing's bad habits: Leaning into its more insular, arcane traits, sometimes at the expense of new potential fans.

That's why NBC Sports has focused on the story-telling aspects of its race-day coverage, said Schanzer, pointing to its recent fond embrace of things like the jockey cam.

“We really want to put the people on the horses' backs as best we can,” said Schanzer, before making a plug. “If you ever have stories that we don't know of, please reach out to us.”

The other two panelists discussed the role of newer ventures, like FanDuel, as a means of funneling new blood towards racing.

“It's never been that way before—it's never been that easy,” said Shona Rotondo, head of marketing at My Racehorse US, about the accessibility of the racehorse ownership program, with its quick online sign-up process. “We want to sell everyone on the emotion of the game.”

Given the summit's remit, it seems only fitting the event's inaugural leadership award went to a long-time industry mainstay, Jane Goldstein.

Said Amy Zimmerman, when introducing the award, “She found an opening into the sport she loved through the publicity offices of several racetracks. She was always the first one done with her work. It wasn't that she was super quick but, you see, women weren't allowed in the press box after 12. Yes, that's also true. During racing, the press box was exclusive to men.

“After almost four decades,” Zimmerman said, “I'm still often asked the ridiculous question: `what's it like being a woman in racing?' When I was hired, I never thought about it, because Jane Goldstein was the one who hired me. Jane was the one who answered that question. The one who waged that battle to open the door. And then she held it open with class, so all of us could walk through it.”

Goldstein received a standing ovation.

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Keeneland At Home, Keeneland Watch Parties Offer Fans Exciting Ways To View Fall Meet

Keeneland is making it easy for fans no matter their location to watch and wager on the track's 17-day Fall Meet with two exciting programs: Keeneland at Home Presented by UK HealthCare and Official Keeneland Watch Parties in Partnership with VisitLEX and the Bluegrass Hospitality Association.

Friday is opening day of the Fall Meet, which runs through Saturday, Oct. 24. The season will be closed to the public because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

“This community and Keeneland's passionate fan base are what make the Keeneland race meets so special,” Keeneland Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer Christa Marrillia said. “Whether you are watching and wagering from home or enjoying the meet from a Keeneland watch party, we are grateful to our fans and tourism partners who are celebrating with us in new ways.”

Keeneland at Home Presented by UK HealthCare

Back by popular demand, Keeneland at Home debuted during the Summer Meet in July and now offers fans a variety of tools to celebrate the Fall Meet and carry on their race-day traditions from the comfort of their own homes. Visit the Keeneland at Home website for links to the livestream of Keeneland races, free race-day digital programs, food and drink recipes, activities for kids and more.

During the Fall Meet, fans are invited to tag @Keeneland and use the hashtag #KeenelandatHome to share their at-home tailgates and viewing parties.

On Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, fans can begin their race days with “Keeneland at Home Presented UK HealthCare.” This 30-minute “pre-game show” will air at 12:15 p.m. ET on Facebook Live, Keeneland's YouTube page and on Twitter @KeenelandRacing. Hosted by Christina Blacker and featuring handicapping and daily picks from Ellis Starr, the program will preview the day's card as well as offer lessons in BETology, cocktail recipes from Buffalo Trace, a preview of the Breeders' Cup World Championships and more.

“Horse racing is synonymous with fall in Kentucky” said Dr. Mark Newman, Executive Vice President for Health Affairs of UK HealthCare. “UK HealthCare is excited to take part in Keeneland at Home and celebrate our community's traditions in new ways that fans can enjoy safely from the comfort of their homes.”

UK HealthCare sponsors the $350,000 First Lady (G1), a 1-mile turf race for fillies and mares, 3-year-olds and up, which is part of the prestigious Fall Stars Weekend and will be run Saturday, Oct. 3. UK HealthCare also is the presenting sponsor of the Keeneland Kids Club.

Official Keeneland Watch Parties

Expanding on the Keeneland at Home model, Keeneland, VisitLEX and the Bluegrass Hospitality Association (BHA) are providing restaurants, bars, hotels and Central Kentucky businesses with tools to safely and responsibly host an Official Keeneland Watch Party.

Interested businesses may register at Keeneland.com/watchparties, download the free toolkit and follow the step-by-step guide to host an Official Watch Party. The toolkit includes cocktail recipes, décor ideas, printable fliers, table tents with QR codes for free digital programs and more. Businesses also may purchase souvenir programs for their guests, obtain Watch Party kits and book Keeneland BETologists for the ultimate Watch Party experience.

“The pandemic and cancellation of countless events like the Keeneland Spring Meet drastically impacted our local tourism community,” VisitLEX Vice President of Marketing Gathan Borden said. “Finding ways to support our tourism partners and celebrate the Fall Meet in a safe and responsible way is a perfect fit for VisitLEX.”

“Blue Grass Hospitality Association is excited to share the Keeneland Watch Party concept with our member hotels, restaurants, bars, attractions and tourism partners” BHA President Pam Avery said. “So many of our members count on the Keeneland race meetings to drive business in April and October. The track's Official Watch Parties will allow our tourism community to capture some of this business in a creative new way.”

Keeneland at Home and Official Keeneland Watch Party offerings include:

Programs: Complimentary race-day programs can be downloaded on Keeneland at Home or through the Keeneland Race Day App. Click here for a list of locations that are selling Keeneland programs.

Keeneland at Home Kits: The Keeneland Shop is offering a selection of Keeneland at Home Kits, which fans can customize. Kits, which include branded drinkware, apparel and accessories, are available in Pick 2, Pick 3 and Pick 4 versions via The Keeneland Shop online store.

Recipes for Keeneland favorites: Make your own Maker's Mark Bread Pudding, Keeneland Burgoo, Buffalo Bow Tie and Keeneland Breeze just as if you were at the track. Click here to download recipes.

Keeneland Select offer: Keeneland Select is an online wagering platform with a rewards program and philanthropic component. Sign up for a new account with Keeneland Select and receive a special $50 back after you wager $100 on Keeneland racing in October with the promo code FALL20. This is on top of Keeneland Select's lucrative sign-up bonus that will earn a player $100 after he or she wagers $300 in the first 30 days.

Keeneland Kids Club in Partnership with UK HealthCare Kentucky Children's Hospital: Young fans are invited to join the popular organization to learn more about Keeneland and the horse industry and participate in its philanthropic element. Also download free Keeneland Coloring Sheets.

TV, online options for viewing Fall Meet racing

Racing during the Fall Meet will begin each day at 1:05 p.m. ET, and fans can watch pre-race action and every race on TVs, on phones and on computers.

Programming will start at 11:30 a.m. with “Today at Keeneland,” a 30-minute preview show with handicapping picks and discussion of horses of interest. Racing analysts Gabby Gaudet and Scott Hazelton host “Today at Keeneland,” which airs live on TVG2, The CW Lexington and WKYT.com and is streamed live on Keeneland.com, Keeneland Select and Keeneland's YouTube page.

NBC and NBCSN will provide live coverage of several of Keeneland's Breeders' Cup Challenge races as part of its “Breeders' Cup Challenge Series: Win and You're In, presented by America's Best Racing.” Air times are Oct. 2 (4-6 p.m. on NBCSN), Oct. 3 (NBC will include coverage from Keeneland during its Preakness-G1 broadcast), Oct. 4 (4:30-6 p.m. on NBCSN) and Oct. 7 (4-5 p.m. on NBCSN).

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