In a surprising development, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced Wednesday that fans may return to the state's racetracks starting Apr. 23. Attendance will be capped at 20% capacity.
A few hours after Cuomo's announcement, NYRA officials were still considering their options and would not commit to allowing fans to attend as soon as Apr. 23.
“The New York Racing Association, Inc. looks forward to welcoming fans back to Belmont Park this spring and to Saratoga Race Course this summer,” NYRA President and CEO Dave O'Rourke. “We thank Governor Cuomo for the opportunity to host fans at our historic tracks for the first time since the start of the pandemic. We will announce ticketing options for fans once we further review the guidelines and protocols set forth for thoroughbred tracks in New York state. NYRA has dearly missed the passion and excitement that fans bring to the sport of thoroughbred racing. Today's announcement by the Governor is one more indication that we are collectively moving toward a return to normalcy.”
Belmont is scheduled to open for its spring meet Apr. 22.
NYRA spokesman Pat McKenna said that it was premature to predict how many fans will be allowed to attend the GI Belmont S. card and the Saratoga races.
“As the rate of vaccination continues to increase across New York State, we are optimistic that capacity restrictions will continue to ease in the coming months in advance of the Belmont Stakes and the 2021 summer meet at Saratoga Race Course,” he said. “We miss our fans dearly, and look forward to seeing them soon back where they belong.”
NYRA has not been allowed to have on-track fans since March 2020, when the pandemic started to shut down the entire country.
It remains to be seen how many fans will be allowed at each facility under the 20% guideline. In 2015, NYRA decided to cap the attendance at cavernous Belmont Park for the Belmont Stakes at 90,000. That could mean that about 18,000 people will be allowed to attend the final leg of the Triple Crown. With vaccinations readily available in the state, the 20% guideline will no doubt change at some point with even more fans being allowed.
The numbers for record crowds at Saratoga are misleading because they include days when the attendance was artificially inflated due to “spinners” going through the turnstiles more than once to collect added giveaway items. The record crowd for the GI Travers day is 60,486. That could mean NYRA will be allowed to welcome about 12,000 fans a day to the popular upstate track.
Cuomo appeared at Belmont Wednesday to do a press briefing, but never mentioned the decision to allow fans back on track. He did take the opportunity to commend the New York racing community for its response to a barn fire Monday in which all but two horses were rescued.
“Due to really extraordinary effort by first responders, the fire department and the staff here at NYRA. Fifty-eight horses were saved,” he said. “Two horses perished, but they did a really outstanding job.”
The post Cuomo Announces Fans Can Return to New York Tracks April 23 appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.
