The budget calls for NYRA to make an initial investment of $2 million to purchase the necessary equipment. The ongoing project will be funded by assessing the most successful out-of-state ADW platforms.

The racing, pari-mutuel wagering and breeding law will be amended by adding a new section 902-a to read as follows: “Equine screening and advanced imaging expenses. 1. In order to assure the public's confidence and continue the high degree of integrity in racing at the pari-mutuel betting tracks, clinical services related to screening and advanced imaging shall be conducted by a land grant university within this state at a location proximate to a race- track owned by the state.”

The machinery will be located at the Cornell Ruffian Equine Specialists adjacent to Belmont Park. According to NYRA, the cost to horsemen to use the imaging equipment will “be reasonable to encourage use.”

Budget negotiations will take place between the NYS Assembly, Senate and Governor's Office in the coming weeks.

“This investment would dramatically expand the availability of highly-advanced imaging technology used to identify pre-existing conditions before they result in serious equine injuries,” said NYRA spokesperson Pat McKenna. “In addition to diagnosing the types of issues that may have gone unnoticed in the past, the partnership between NYRA and Cornell University will ensure the technology is located just outside the gates of Belmont Park and available to trainers and owners at a reasonable cost. In addition, the partnership will generate important academic research around the biomechanics and veterinary treatment of thoroughbreds in training. NYRA has embraced a wide variety of equine safety enhancements rooted in science and technology, and we strongly support this initiative.”

The agreement with Cornell is the latest step taken by NYRA to improve horse safety. Over the past year, NYRA has partnered with Arioneo Equine Technology to monitor heart rate and movement patterns of horses during more than 3,000 timed workouts; opened a research study on electrocardiograms with equine cardiologists and data science experts at Cornell and Carnegie Mellon University; incorporated Sleip, an AI-based equine gait diagnostic tool, into NYRA's daily regulatory veterinary exams; continuously monitored and tested various emerging applications and technologies and instituted an additional level of veterinary scrutiny for all horses seeking to compete at the NYRA venues.

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Constructed by Tapeta Footings, the new surface is designed to improve safety while also helping to limit weather-related training disruptions.

“The main thing is having synthetic will alleviate a complete stoppage of training because of weather,” said Jason Egan, Santa Anita Director of Racing and Racing Secretary.

This week has provided a perfect example of the potential impact of a synthetic training track at Santa Anita. With back-to-back rainstorms hitting the area, the main track was “sealed” on Tuesday and has since been closed entirely for training.

“We have some unique situations in California with rules as it relates to weather,” Egan said. “Like with the rain this week. It either closes our racetrack entirely or limits what our training activities can be.”

With the worst of this week's rainstorms having passed, Santa Anita's main track is expected to be unsealed Friday. Per rules of the California Racing Board, only joggers will be allowed on the track Saturday. Full training is slated to resume on Sunday given the current forecast.

“Having a synthetic training track, we can continue on with workouts, gallops, that sort of thing. I think it will be a big assist,” Egan added.

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The Breeders' Cup World Championships at Santa Anita Park will be conducted according to industry-leading safety and integrity protocols to ensure the wellbeing of all human and equine athletes. As previously announced, Breeders' Cup introduced an enhanced pre-screening protocol in the lead-up to this year's World Championships, upholding its ongoing commitment to putting safety first.

This year also marks the first time the Breeders' Cup World Championships will run under the full jurisdiction of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority (HISA), including the Anti-Doping and Medication Control (ADMC) Program, which took effect in May.

Breeders' Cup runners are subject to strict anti-doping and medication control requirements, including out-of-competition, pre-race, and post-race testing administered by the Horseracing Integrity and Welfare Unit (HIWU). Additional safety and integrity protocols include equine security and surveillance measures, enhanced veterinary exam procedures, injury management protocols and racing surface maintenance and testing in the leadup to the event.

Early Preparations: Out-of-Competition Testing, Veterinary Coordination & Racing Surface Oversight

Beginning in July 2023, a list of potential Breeders' Cup contenders was developed. The list included a combination of graded stakes winners, Challenge Series winners, and other horses on the possible starter list. HIWU then performed out-of-competition (OOC) testing for banned substances on those potential contenders. Blood samples were taken by HIWU-trained collection personnel and sent for testing to HIWU-accredited labs. Breeders' Cup OOC testing administered by HIWU concluded Oct. 30 and resulted in the collection of 226 samples.

The Breeders Cup Veterinary Team also began holding coordination meetings with counterparts from 1/ST Racing, HISA, HIWU and the California Horse Racing Board (CHRB) in July. Through a regular cadence of meetings in the ensuing months, the group outlined veterinary exam schedules, OOC testing, safety and medication regulations, injury management and diagnostic tool implementation.

Dr. Mick Peterson, Program Director of the University of Kentucky Racetrack Safety Program, has worked in collaboration with 1/ST Racing Track Consultant Dennis Moore throughout the year. Both surface experts have also consulted with HISA's new Track Surfaces Advisory Group throughout their evaluation and maintenance operations of the racing surfaces at Santa Anita Park.

Safety & Integrity Protocols: October through World Championships Week

The five-member Breeders' Cup Veterinary Review Team completed its initial phase of enhanced pre-screening protocols on Oct. 23. This included:

• The assessment of veterinary and treatment records as well as training and racing patterns associated with more than 200 potential contenders;
• Physical examinations conducted by veterinarians in relevant racing jurisdictions around the world; and
• The use of advanced diagnostic tools in the event additional scrutiny was required.

Attending veterinarians for all potential Breeders' Cup runners were required to submit 30-day treatment records–a nationwide requirement under HISA that will inform the Breeders' Cup Veterinary Review Team's second review–upon pre-entry. 24-hour surveillance began following the mandatory equine security check-in at 10:00 pm PT on Sunday, Oct. 29 for international runners and 11:00 am PT on Tuesday, Oct. 31 for domestic runners. All horses entered in a Breeders' Cup race underwent an additional round of HIWU-administered pre-race blood testing for banned substances on Tuesday, Oct. 31, with results set to be returned by race day.

Additionally, every Breeders' Cup runner is subject to:

• Comprehensive onsite veterinary exams, including jog exams and the use of diagnostic technology as needed, beginning Wednesday, Oct. 25;
• Random physical examination at the determination of the Breeders' Cup Veterinary Team;
• In-stall and on-track veterinary oversight during training and schooling;
• Mandatory jog-up veterinary exams before exiting any racing or training surface at Santa Anita Park starting Friday, Oct. 27;
• Pre-race veterinary examinations in the barn and veterinary monitoring of horses in the paddock and during warm-up on race day;
• Extensive post-race testing of the first four finishers as well as any runner that does not perform as expected and other runners as designated by the stewards; and
• Observation of all other finishers cooling out as they exit the racetrack to determine if any need aid.

Throughout the week leading up to the World Championships, Dr. Mick Peterson's team has been conducting various checks to evaluate all track surfaces. Additionally, TurfTrax software has been employed to measure the condition of the turf track. These results are posted daily for horsemen and the media.

Additional resources detailing Breeders' Cup's health and safety protocols for the 2023 World Championships can be found here and downloaded here.

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Representatives of HISA and AWS–along with a group of Thoroughbred trainers, veterinarians and industry technologists–met at AWS offices in Nashville last month for an Equine Health Innovation Workshop. The meeting focused on using data and technology to determine which interventions, such as specific changes to HISA's rules or the introduction of new technologies, could have further material impact on equine safety.

“The insights gleaned from big data and machine learning have revolutionized industries around the world. Thanks to HISA's uniform reporting requirements, we are now able to apply these powerful tools to help solve the sport's most pressing equine welfare issues,” said HISA CEO Lisa Lazarus. “We're excited to collaborate with the best data experts in the world, including AWS, to develop concrete solutions to address the root causes of equine injuries.”

In addition to inputs such as sensor data from wearable devices, racing and training performance data, racetrack surface data, weather information and veterinary records, HISA and AWS are also exploring potential data inputs from other sources to measure horses' movements with a level of granularity never measured before.

The goal of this work is to create a comprehensive analytics and insights platform that would use HISA's expansive data to test experts' hypotheses about the root causes of equine injuries and provide horses' care teams with the tools needed to potentially predict and prevent injuries before they occur. First steps of this process–including data standardization and data capture/ingestion–are already underway.

“This collaboration signifies a fusion of technology, invention and the vast experience of dozens of leaders in horse racing who care greatly for these equine athletes,” said AWS Business Innovation Principal Glenn Holland. “We are honored to have HISA leverage the AWS Cloud to accelerate their vision and drive this impactful initiative. This project is part of a new era in horse racing, where innovation delivers long-lasting positive impact to the sport.”

AWS has worked alongside other major sports leagues, such as the NFL, for years to analyze injury data and use that data analysis to drive rules changes and equip coaches and club medical staffs with the tools they need to help players manage risk and prevent injuries.

HISA and AWS representatives, along with other industry technology leaders, are taking the next steps in this project at an AWS-led Solution Workshop on Monday, Oct. 30 in New York. The workshop will dive deep on data and technical requirements as well as end-user needs to continue to drive progress on this ambitious endeavor.

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A lot more sprints are being run on dirt than either turf or synthetic. The composition of the dirt surface makes speed the best asset for horses who compete and it is common to see fractions of sub-22 seconds for a first 1/4 of a mile, and over 24 or 25 seconds on the final portion of a race. Those fractions are even more polarized in dirt route races where lower-caliber horses would sometimes finish their last 1/4 of a mile in 27 or 28 seconds, merely faster than a two-minute pace.

On either turf or synthetic, Jockeys have (usually) enough common sense to rate their mounts early and save something for the end. The kindness of the courses makes it that horses can close late and still prevail if best.

Unfortunately, speed hurts horses, be during training or racing. This is the nature of the beast with dirt racing and I believe that one of the major factors that numbers of fatalities are so much higher on that surface, has a lot to do with the pace that races are run at. Horses finish tired, experience a lack of oxygen in their metabolism and that hypoxia generates injuries, and sometimes fatalities.

The table tells us that rate of fatalities is higher in sprints than two turn races, which could validate the argument that early speed more than distance is a vector to injuries.

Another interesting fact in The Jockey Club numbers is that, for both turf and synthetic surfaces, the rate of fatalities has been steadily decreasing by between 15 and 30% every year for the last four years, mostly due to increased veterinary oversight. But on dirt, the numbers seem to have reached a plateau since it has steadily stayed the same during the same period, despite all the scrutiny it has been under.

–Leonard Powell

Editor's Note:

Southern California trainer Leonard Powell is referring to statistics from the Equine Injury Database which show that since 2009, the fatal injury rate has been 1.93 per thousand starts on races under six furlongs, 1.66 in races from six to eight furlongs, and 1.54 in races over a mile.

The complete table may be seen here. 

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His team has conducted the ongoing testing at Churchill Downs, and it will be tasked this week with being sure Ellis Park is ready to handle a race meet in expedited fashion while also helping out with the continued surface analysis at Churchill.

TDN spoke with Peterson early Friday evening in the wake of the 12 horse deaths at Churchill that caused that track's corporate ownership to move a portion of its remaining spring meet to Ellis, which has not hosted racing since last summer. An edited version of that conversation follows.

TDN: Please describe your team's role, what's been done so far at Churchill, and what are the next steps at both Churchill and Ellis.

MP: I'm a professor at the University of Kentucky, and the university has set up with the racing industry to allow me to spend half of my time running the non-profit Racing Surfaces Testing Laboratory in Lexington. We now have six full-time people, and we work for the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) Authority doing testing. We also work for racetracks doing testing, and we do materials testing. Our standards, quite a few of them, have been adopted as international standards. Others, we're working on getting them accepted as international standards.

Our next priority is to do anything we can to help Churchill, and to evaluate the Ellis surface for HISA, because we're moving there and we need to make sure, to the extent that we can, that [Ellis is ready and safe to race].

We've got this really systematic “pre-flight” process we go through before each race meet. We did our testing 2 1/2 months ago to get ready for the Churchill race meet, and then we repeated it after [GI Kentucky] Derby week. It involves ground-penetrating radar, biomechanical surface testing, and we measure grades.

At the start of the race meet, everything looked good. It looked good after the Derby, too. We just didn't see anything out of whack.

I'm not going to pretend we know everything. That's not a part of what we're doing. We can work on consistency. But we've still got a lot to learn about safety. And that's really the wonderful thing about HISA. We're going to be doing this now at a [nationwide] scale, and it won't depend on who the general manager [at any given track] is. It will be every [track] just does the same thing.

So I've been thinking we're on the cusp of something good. And then the [12 fatalities at Churchill] happen, and it just makes you think, “What don't we know? What are we missing?”

TDN: What's next?

MP: At Churchill, we'll go back and I suspect we'll do some more testing. [West Coast track surfaces consultant] Dennis Moore has finished up [a round of testing this week], and I just talked to him right before you called, and we're just making sure we understand everything that we're looking at. He hasn't found anything of any note there. But we're going to keep looking.

What we're scheduling now [at Churchill] is the same testing we do for every other racetrack. We'll be doing 72 tracks this year according to the schedule. And we'll be doing the same thing at Ellis. Ellis was on the schedule for next week anyway. We're just going to [expedite] it, and if we find anything, we'll fix it. It's a seasonal track, so it's got its own set of challenges. My understanding is that before the announcement, [Churchill representatives] were over there [to try to figure out if Ellis] was ready.

I think [moving the meet to Ellis] is a good thing. We've got to figure out what was going on [at Churchill] and look at everything. And I don't mean just the track: Horse population, the history of the horses, et cetera.

TDN: Ellis hasn't hosted racing since last summer. Most dormant dirt tracks get rolled and compacted when not in use, then gradually get opened up with harrows prior to the meet starting. Where are they in that process?

MP: I don't know. We need to follow up. We just got the announcement [Friday]. But keep in mind that Del Mar, which incidentally, is a dirt track that has been the safest major track in North America for the last couple of years, they've got the [San Diego County Fair] on that [compacted] surface until like a week and a half before [racing begins].

What we generally say is the trick is to do three days of simulated racing, [which can be condensed into] a 24-hour period. We're talking watering, harrowing [and that repeated cycle]. That's how we make sure that the track is fully set up. Dennis Moore is the one who has probably perfected that.

TDN: Back in 2014-15, when Aqueduct had a spate of 12 catastrophic fatalities, TDN interviewed several veterinarians who suggested that absent of any identifiable problems, the deaths could be explained statistically as a “bad run of numbers.” That can make mathematic sense, but the theory tends not to go over well when people are demanding quick answers and causes. Could that be the case at Churchill?

MP: Remember, I'm not a veterinarian. I'm not even close. I'm a PhD engineer. But I'm pretty good with numbers. [And] if you look at this, this absolutely [could be what the New York vets] were talking about.

TDN: You've been working on track safety for the better part of three decades. Given the more intense focus on horse deaths, do you find increased pressure to come up with “magic bullet” types of answers to difficult, multi-factorial problems?

MP: The comparison that I like to make is that what I do is like the National Transportation Safety Board when they have a train derailment. I'm one of the pieces that goes into the puzzle for them to understand it so they can respond and do the analysis. But it isn't going to be just one piece. It's going to [involve] necropsy results. The drug testing. The past performances of the horses. The training history. All those pieces fit together, and then that's what a good post-mortem exam is going to look like.

It doesn't happen quickly, and it's probably way slower than it should [be], which is something that I think HISA has got to focus some effort on. But my role is to give them the track part of it. I think we've gotten to where we do a better job at that than we did. I'm not 100% satisfied. But we're working on it.

TDN: What, specifically, are you working on that could be a future game-changer?

MP: We have a prototype of a sensor that goes on the harrow, and it will give us moisture content and cushion depth in real time between every race. That really will be a “black box” that goes with the overall process. [Think of] our pre-meet testing as the pre-flight checklist. As we go forward, our goal is to make [the sensor] the black box [like the one that records in-flight data]. That's where we're headed. For better or worse, these are the sorts of events that [spur] progress.

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The first day of racing at Ellis will be held on June 10. The Churchill-at-Ellis meet will end on July 3.

Racing at Churchill will be held as scheduled this Saturday and Sunday.

“The team at Churchill Downs takes great pride in our commitment to safety and strives to set the highest standard in racing, consistently going above and beyond the regulations and policies that are required,” said Bill Carstanjen, CEO of CDI in a statement. “What has happened at our track is deeply upsetting and absolutely unacceptable. Despite our best efforts to identify a cause for the recent horse injuries, and though no issues have been linked to our racing surfaces or environment at Churchill Downs, we need to take more time to conduct a top-to-bottom review of all of the details and circumstances so that we can further strengthen our surface, safety and integrity protocols.”

Carstanjen's statement continued: “In addition to our commitment to providing the safest racing environment for our participants, we have an immense responsibility as the economic engine of the Thoroughbred industry in Kentucky which provides jobs and income for thousands of families every day. By relocating the remainder of the meet to Ellis Park, we are able to maintain this industry ecosystem with only minor disruption. We are grateful to the Kentucky horsemen for their support, resiliency and continued partnership as we collectively work to find answers during this time.”

Shortly after the Churchill statement was released, the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority (HISA) put out a release of its own, saying that it had recommended that the meet be suspended. HISA does not have the authority to close a meet down but can prevent a track from sending out its simulcasting signal if it feels that track is not making their best effort to deal with breakdowns and other safety issues.

“HISA's highest priority is the safety and wellbeing of equine and human athletes competing under our jurisdiction,” said HISA CEO Lisa Lazarus. “Given that we have been so far unable to draw conclusions about the cause of the recent equine fatalities at Churchill Downs, and therefore have been unable to recommend or require interventions that we felt would adequately ensure the safety of the horses running there, we made the decision to recommend to CDI that they temporarily suspend racing at Churchill Downs while additional reviews continue. We know that CDI and the KHRC [Kentucky Horse Racing Commision] share our goal of ensuring safety above all else, and we appreciate their thoughtfulness and cooperation through these challenging moments. We will continue to seek answers and work with everyone involved to ensure that horses are running safely at Churchill Downs again in the near future.”

The shift to Ellis was made despite widespread agreement among trainers, jockeys and by experts brought in to examine the racing surface that there were no issues with either the main track or the turf course. Of the 12 horses who have died, seven died in races run over the main track. There was also a fatality in a turf race and another during training hours. Wild On Ice (Tapizar), a contender for the GI Kentucky Derby, was the first fatality when he broke down during morning training on Apr. 27. Three other horses died due to causes other than musculoskeletal injuries.

Considering the widespread opinion that there is nothing wrong with the track, Rick Hiles, President of the Kentucky HBPA, came out with his own statement Friday in which he questioned the decision.

“Horsemen question the purpose of this unprecedented step, especially without conclusive evidence that there is a problem with the racetrack at Churchill Downs. We all want to find solutions that will improve safety for horses. However, we need to discuss allowing trainers and veterinarians to use therapeutic medications that greatly lessen the risk of breakdowns. Drastic steps, such as relocating an active race meet, should only be considered when it is certain to make a difference.”

The HISA statement also referenced the findings that there is nothing amiss with the racetrack.

“Track surface expert Dennis Moore completed his HISA-commissioned review of the Churchill Downs Racetrack and reported his findings to HISA earlier today,” the statement read. “After conducting his own inspection of the surface and reviewing data collected by Racing Surfaces Testing Laboratory (RSTL) and Churchill Downs, he reported there were no primary areas for concern and has verified that the various track metrics analyzed are consistent with previous years.”

The decision to move to Ellis was approved Friday by the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission (KHRC).

“Today, Churchill Downs requested a voluntary move of their operations to Ellis Park for the remainder of their spring meet,” KHRC spokesperson Kristin Voskuhl said. “Out of an abundance of caution for the safety of all racing participants, the KHRC approved the move. The KHRC is working closely with Churchill Downs and the Horseracing Integrity & Safety Authority on continuing  investigations into the recent equine fatalities.”

The condition book for the Churchill meet and the stakes schedule will remain unchanged upon the shift to Ellis.

Last September, Churchill announced that it had bought Ellis from Enchantment Holdings for $79 million in cash. Following the Churchill-at-Ellis meet, racing will continue at Ellis. The 2023 Ellis meet runs from July 7 through Sunday, Aug. 27.

The move to Ellis will be an inconvenience for horsemen. Ellis is roughly 103 miles from Louisville. Despite that, Churchill-based trainer Dale Romans said he understood why Churchill made the move.

“I think it is overkill, but better to have overkill than to not pay attention to the breakdowns,” he said. “Yes, it surprised me when I first heard about it. But we are talking about a major corporate company and they don't want to keep going with things being the way they are only to figure out later that it was the racetrack. You can't execute Churchill for trying to do the right thing.”

When faced with similar problems in 2019, Santa Anita shut down its meet for about three weeks before resuming racing.

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“The Kentucky Horse Racing Commission (KHRC) takes the safety of all racing participants very seriously. The increased number of horse fatalities in Kentucky is concerning and the KHRC's veteran team continues to explore every known variable that could possibly be contributing factors in these deaths.

“Working daily with Churchill Downs and the Horseracing Safety Authority (HISA), the KHRC has taken the following actions:

• Opened an investigation into every horse fatality
• Interviewed jockeys, trainers, owners, grooms and backside workers regarding safety concerns and observations
• Increased pre-race scrutiny on every horse for racing soundness
• Participated in roundtable discussions with Churchill Downs' veterinary team, track superintendents and track executives looking for any recurring factor in the incidents.
• Reached out to California Horse Racing Board Executive Director Scott Chaney for best practices in the event of a rash of equine fatalities
• Participated in the HISA emergency summit and shared details of daily workouts, investigative interviews
• Created an executive-level safety steward position to coordinate daily track safety measures. Job details will be posted at KHRC.ky.gov when available.

“Out of an abundance of caution and effective June 7, 2023, Kentucky Thoroughbred Development Fund purses will be limited to first through fifth place finishers.

“All investigations opened after Apr. 29, 2023 are ongoing, but so far have not identified a common variable between these recent fatalities. The KHRC has not received necropsy reports from the University of Kentucky for any horse fatality after May 2, 2023. Once necropsies are completed and blood analysis is returned, the KHRC veterinary team takes a comprehensive look at all known factors that contributed to that death and compiles those results in a mortality review. As these reviews are completed, they will be made public and posted to the KHRC website at https://khrc.ky.gov/new_docs.aspx?cat=30&menuid=30

“Each completed mortality review will be shared with HISA for further review and recommendations.

“On June 2, 2022, the KHRC entered a voluntary agreement with HISA that grants them authority to oversee racetrack safety. On Mar. 21, 2023, KHRC entered a voluntary agreement with HISA's Anti-Doping and Medication Control (ADMC) Program.

“With these agreements in effect, the KHRC has authority to suspend a license for any violation that threatens the integrity of Kentucky horse racing or the KHRC's ability to protect the racing public except where HISA has preempted state regulations in the areas of 1) track safety, and 2) anti-doping and medication control (“ADMC”).  If a track had violations related to either of these areas, HISA would have jurisdiction.”

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Over the past several days, the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority (HISA) has undertaken multiple measures to better understand the circumstances surrounding the recent spate of equine fatalities at Churchill Downs in hopes of working with the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission (KHRC) and Churchill Downs to mitigate additional risk to the horses and riders competing at Churchill Downs moving forward.

On Tuesday, May 30, HISA convened a Veterinary Summit with its counterparts at Churchill Downs and the KHRC to thoroughly review all veterinary information available and conduct additional analyses. Those discussions continued through yesterday with ongoing engagement between the veterinary teams. Specifically, the Summit included robust discussion of three different points of intervention with regard to racing injuries: 1) injury management, 2) preventing at-risk horses from racing via veterinary scrutiny, and 3) preventing at-risk horses from entering.

The dialogue was productive and conclusions from the Summit have been shared directly with key stakeholders to inform next steps. While no obvious or specific pattern emerged, HISA welcomes Churchill Downs' efforts announced earlier today to minimize risk of equine fatalities and is implementing the following additional measures:

1. Effective with Saturday's entries, HISA's Director of Equine Safety and Welfare will conduct an additional layer of post-entry screening. HISA's rule 2142 (Assessment of Racing Soundness) requires post-entry screenings of previous pre-Race inspection findings of entered Horses to identify Horses that may be at increased risk for injury. The review includes past performances, lay-ups (more than 60 days without a timed Workout or Race), last 30 days medical history, previous injury and lameness diagnostics, intraarticular corticosteroid injections, previous surgery and other individual Horse risk factors.
2. HISA has directed the Horseracing Integrity and Welfare Unit (HIWU) to collect blood and hair samples for all fatalities involving Covered Horses. The results from such collections will be used to facilitate investigations into the cause of such fatalities. The data collected by HIWU in connection with Covered Horse fatalities will also be used to track relevant statistics and trends in connection with fatalities.
3. HISA has appointed Dr. Alina Vale, an equine forensics specialist, to conduct an additional thorough review of all necropsies performed on Covered Horses. Dr. Vale has conducted several postmortem reviews as an official veterinarian for the California Horse Racing Board, including participating in the review following a spate of equine fatalities at Santa Anita in 2019.

Additionally, Dennis Moore began his analysis of Churchill Downs' racing and training surfaces yesterday. That review is ongoing; Moore's conclusions will be shared publicly once his review is complete.

HISA continues to urgently seek additional answers to more clearly identify the causes of these recent fatalities as well as tangible interventions to prevent them in the future. All options remain on the table, and HISA will continue to vigilantly monitor events at Churchill Downs moving forward.

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