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Elevating Horse Racing: Hieronymous Took Keeneland’s Broadcasting From The Bottom To The Top

In the early 2000s, hosting the Breeders' Cup seemed an unattainable ambition for Keeneland. Like many racetracks, they lagged behind in broadcast quality and needed to improve venue infrastructure. But in a dramatic turnaround in 2005, Keeneland won the first of seven International Simulcast Awards for outstanding simulcast signal. In 2015, Keeneland became the home of what's widely acknowledged as the best Breeders' Cup ever.

The year 2000, when G.D. Hieronymus joined Keeneland as Director of Broadcast Services, marked a turning point for the racetrack's broadcast department. Under Hieronymus' leadership, Keeneland became the most technology-advanced broadcast facility in horse racing across the US.

Leading the broadcast signal innovation

Keeneland's broadcast signal struggled with average standard definition (SD) quality. In 2000, Keeneland approached Hieronymus, then Vice President of Production at Hammond Communications, and tasked him with transforming its simulcast broadcast to stand out from the crowd.

Hieronymus believed in the power of delivering a compelling fan experience both on-track and in-broadcast, and was committed to upping Keeneland's game.

“Compared to other sports, horse racing has been miles off delivering great broadcast coverage and an engaging at-venue and off-track viewing experience. At Keeneland, we were determined to change that with the right technology,” Hieronymus said.

Keeneland was ahead of its time in recognizing that network air time relied on the racetracks delivering a high-quality broadcast signal. To meet this goal, Hieronymus concentrated on making Keeneland the first full-HD racetrack in North America. The Keeneland team upgraded the camera equipment and control room, dramatically improving the racetrack's simulcast signal and distribution. They were also one of the first racetracks to include a TVG-dedicated position in the control room, helping increase their TVG air time.

“We were committed to making the networks' job easier and delivering the signal quality they needed to make Keeneland look good. We've built our control room on this premise,” Hieronymus said.

The Breeders' Cup milestone

During Hieronymus' service, Keeneland hosted the Breeders' Cup World Championships in 2015 and 2020. The horse racing industry still praises the 2015 competition for its great planning and execution despite difficult weather conditions at the time.

In 2020, the Breeders' Cup returned to Keeneland under even more challenging conditions. With COVID-19 protocols limiting at-venue audience attendance, the virtual viewing experience became even more important. This was the perfect opportunity for Hieronymus and his team to revolutionize fan engagement at Keeneland.

“As a horse racing fan and wagerer, I've always felt the viewers were at the mercy of technical directors, who typically only focused on the top horses in the race,” he said. “This meant we hardly got the chance to see other horses during pre-race. I wanted to change that.”

Keeneland, NBC, and Breeders' Cup deployed over 80 television cameras covering the event, but Hieronymus wanted to take the fan experience a step further. Together with the Breeders' Cup and LTN Global, he delivered the Contender Cam, the ISO coverage of every horse in every race. The Contender Cam provided 14 individual views of each horse, from when the horse entered the paddock to when it entered the starting gate. This footage of individual horses, available on the Breederscup.com app, Player Show, and NBC, enabled fans and bettors to see their preferred horses up close before placing their bets — replicating and enhancing the in-person fan experience.

HD TV Renovation/Upgrade. Photo Left to right Lauren Warren, Philp Richardson, GD Hieronymus, and Curt Toumanian from Pegasus Communications, Inc.

The Breeders' Cup also featured 360° VR technology, providing an immersive live fan experience of the walking ring and Winner's Circle, and jockey cams allowing fans to experience live view from up to two jockeys in each race. In addition, the Breeders' Cup deployed a 100-miles-per-hour BatCam that provided dynamic aerial views of the races.

Becoming a world-class technology-driven leader for Thoroughbred sales

Aside from a top racetrack, Keeneland is also the Thoroughbred industry's leading auction house, with the most bloodstock going through auctions. Hieronymus and his team introduced a technology infrastructure to optimize the sales operation and buyer interaction and attract more interest worldwide. From a new control room to touchscreen devices that share data and information when horses come in and are integrated with the sales systems, Keeneland has led sales innovation.

In 2020, Keeneland introduced remote bidding to compensate for the pandemic-induced travel restrictions and enable more buyers from across the world to take part in digital auction services. The sales team offered sellers video opportunities to show their horses well in advance and increase bids.

Every racetrack can champion horse racing experience

Keeneland's journey has demonstrated that nothing is impossible when a track's broadcast department is determined to innovate to deliver an outstanding fan experience. Starting with switching to HD and dramatically improving the signal quality, Hieronymus and his team made Keeneland the most innovative racetrack in the country — winning broadcast awards and setting the bar for Breeders' Cup production.

Hieronymus believes in driving fan engagement and creating new revenue opportunities through innovation. With the rest of the sports industry moving fast to 4K, 8K, and rich content formats, racetracks need to deliver a high-quality broadcast signal to compete. To claim a bigger share of the fast-growing sports wagering market, racetracks should create more opportunities for fan and player engagement — and data is a good way to achieve it.

Despite his retirement from Keeneland earlier this year, Hieronymus is still involved in numerous projects across the horse racing industry. Above all, he is on a mission.

“I really want to support all racetracks in raising the quality of their broadcast signal and help our industry compete with other sports head-on,” he said.

Rich Rosa is the Vice President of Business Development for Wagering and Simulcasting at LTN Global Communications. As LTN's horse racing industry lead, Rich partners with tracks across the country to help them create high-quality productions and find new distribution outlets to raise their profile — and ultimately their wagering handle. LTN offers centralized production and IP-based transport services to help tracks produce and/or distribute high-quality HD and 4K content.

About LTN Global

LTN® Global is a worldwide leader in video technology solutions for producers and distributors of broadcast-quality content. Built on the world's fastest and most reliable IP multicast network, LTN's universal media ecosystem unites modular services and integrates with other leading technologies to bring full-video-chain workflows, driving scale from creation and acquisition to monetization and delivery.

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Live Oak Gets Selene Stakes Win With Our Flash Drive

Trainer Mark Casse continued his Grade 3 Selene Stakes win streak as Live Oak Plantation's homebred Our Flash Drive took command on the final turn and drove clear to win the $150,000 co-feature for three-year-old fillies on Saturday at Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto, Ontario.

Casse earned his fourth consecutive victory in the G3 event, with Patrick Husbands engineering the winning trip aboard the Florida-bred daughter of Ghostzapper.

Stretching out to 1 1/16 miles on the main track, Our Flash Drive stalked the front-running California Lily early on before moving up to press the pace after opening fractions of :24.78 and :49.03. With Husbands signaling it was go-time past the 1:12.87 three-quarter mark, Our Flash Drive overtook the pacesetter and took off down the lane to win by 2-1/4 lengths in 1:44.69.

Woodbine Oaks eligible Munnyfor Ro, who broke outward, rallied home from the backfield to take the runner-up honors under Justin Stein. It was another 2-1/4 lengths back to third-place finisher Sweet Souper Sweet, another Live Oak homebred trained by Michael Trombetta, who finished three lengths ahead of California Lily. Gote Go followed in fifth and the Casse-trained Danger was eased up and completed the order of finish.

Sent postward as the odds-on favourite, Our Flash Drive returned $4.70 to win.

Now two-for-four lifetime, she boasts back-to-back wins at Woodbine.

Casse, who has won the Selene a total of seven times, has teamed with Husbands to take four editions of the race. They combined for past wins with Dark Ending (2001), Dixie Strike (2012), and Miss Mo Mentum (2018).

The connections of Il Malocchio, who was cross-entered in the Selene, opted to compete in the Fury two races later.

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Souper Sensational Rallies To Win Victory Ride At Belmont

Live Oak Plantation's Souper Sensational rallied to an impressive score in Saturday's $150,000 Grade 3 Victory Ride, a 6 1/2-furlong sprint for sophomore fillies at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y.

Trained by Hall of Famer Mark Casse and piloted by Flavien Prat, Souper Sensational was slowest away from the gate but quick when it mattered most, demonstrating a smart turn-of-foot late in the turn en route to a 3 1/4-length win.

Miss Brazil, with Jose Ortiz up, set a contested pace of :22.81 and :45.68 seconds on the main track rated good, with Ova Charged on her flank and Red Ghost outside of that one as Souper Sensational settled in fifth.

Ove Charged loomed large but Souper Sensation, rallying wide outside of rivals, found her best foot through the turn and was 1 1/2-lengths in front at the stretch call. A game Ova Charged continued to find more, but there was no reeling in the runaway Souper Sensational, who stopped the clock in 1:15.79.

Prat, aboard Souper Sensational for the first time, said the talented chestnut provided an immediate response when asked.

“She was traveling well and when I got her in the clear, she really kicked on well,” said Prat. “It didn't feel like we were going crazy fast. I thought she broke well. I bided my time and got off to a nice rhythm. In the end, she really responded.”

Ova Charged, with Luis Saez up, completed the exacta by two lengths over Inject. Red Ghost, Miss Brazil, and the previously undefeated Australasia completed the order of finish. Bella Sofia and Shop Girl were scratched.

“It was a very nice trip. She broke beautifully,” said Saez. “She never gave up and kept trying the whole way. We just got beat by a good one.”

Bred in Kentucky by Newtownanner Stud, Souper Sensational banked $82,500 in victory. She returned $13.80 for a $2 win wager.

The victory marked the first graded stakes win for Souper Sensational, who turned back in distance in the Victory Ride off a trio of Grade 2 efforts, finishing sixth in the 1 1/16-mile Rachel Alexandra at Fair Grounds in February, third in the 1 1/16-mile Fair Grounds Oaks in March, and fourth in the seven-furlong Eight Belles at Churchill Downs in April.

Live racing resumes Sunday at Belmont for Closing Day of the 48-day spring/summer meet. First post on the nine-race card, featuring the $150,000 River Memories, is 12:30 p.m. Eastern.

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Arthur: Post Story Questioning Justify Case Was A Plant From Ruis Legal Team

In the second of a two-part question and answer with the Thoroughbred Daily News, retiring California equine medical director Dr. Rick Arthur casts doubt on the origins of new reporting on the 2018 Justify scopolamine case. Arthur, who has served in the role 15 years, was the subject of a critical report by the Washington Post in late June suggesting that he had deliberately stalled the investigative process of Justify's scopolamine overage until after the horse had completed his Triple Crown bid.

When speaking to the TDN, Arthur maintained that the investigation — and others into high scopolamine tests which also resulted in no sanctions — was by handled as suggested by staff counsel. He also said he thought the legal team for Mick Ruis, who filed a lawsuit over the handling of the Justify case, was behind the Post's story, with help from CHRB commissioner Oscar Gonzales.

“I don't know if Oscar was the one, but Oscar has certainly been the proponent of keeping the Justify issue alive. Actually, I filed a whistleblower complaint against Commissioner Gonzales for basically arguing the Justify case as if he was representing Ruis with talking points that were clearly provided by Darrell Vienna,” Arthur said. “I'm sure Commissioner Gonzales knows that I filed a whistleblower complaint. I think I haven't hidden my disdain for Commissioner Gonzales for a long time.

“There certainly have been attorneys that have tried to play commissioners over the years. And I think that we have an ambitious petty politician that wants to make a name for himself that allowed himself to be played. The Justify case was dismissed in accordance to state law, and it was not dismissed by Rick Arthur. It was not dismissed by [former CHRB executive director] Rick Baedeker. It was dismissed by the board, which is required by law. And that was done properly in accordance to law.”

Beyond his response to the Post story, Arthur told the TDN he believes California has made significant progress in the areas of equine welfare and safety in the 15 years he has been involved. Some regulations might be a little extreme, he admitted, but he thinks the state will find the balance with time.