Alex Waldrop, who will retire at year's end as President and Chief Executive Officer of the National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA), has been honored with the 2021 Clay Puett Award for outstanding contributions to the racing industry. The award, which was bestowed upon Waldrop at last week's 47th Annual University of Arizona Global Symposium on Racing, was established in 1994 and is named after Clay Puett, an Arizona resident whose innovations, including the development of the mechanical starting gate, helped to revolutionize racing around the world.
Waldrop has had a distinguished career in the horse racing industry, serving as President of Churchill Downs and later as Chair of the equine, gaming, and entertainment practice group at the Kentucky-based law firm Wyatt Tarrant & Combs, where he served as the NTRA's general counsel before joining the organization full-time in his current role.
Under Waldrop's leadership, the NTRA grew its footprint in Washington, D.C., solidifying its position as the industry's leading voice and the entity that represents all segments of the Thoroughbred industry on Capitol Hill. As the trade association for the Thoroughbred industry, the NTRA has focused its lobbying on legislation having a direct and material impact on its members and their business activities as they relate to horse racing, breeding and pari-mutuel wagering.
Support of and by horseplayers led to one of the biggest highlights during Waldrop's time at the NTRA when in 2017 the U.S. Treasury Department formally adopted modernized regulations regarding the withholding and reporting of winning pari-mutuel wagers. The new regulations were the culmination of nearly a decade of work on Capitol Hill by the NTRA, and overnight resulted in dramatically reduced reporting obligations for horseplayers and practically eliminated withholding on winning wagers, allowing horseplayers to retain more of their winnings.
Waldrop also serves as President of NTRA Horse PAC®, the Federal Political Action Committee of the NTRA that has raised more than $5 million through voluntary contributions to support political parties and candidates for elective office at the federal level.
In 2008, Waldrop and the NTRA led an industry-wide effort that resulted in the creation of the NTRA Safety and Integrity Alliance, an entirely new program and self-regulatory body that for more than a decade has identified and implemented national safety and integrity standards at many of the nation's leading racetracks.
The NTRA's group purchasing arm, NTRA Advantage, realized unparalleled success during Waldrop's tenure. Advantage surpassed $1 billion in sales to the equine industry in 2019 and has provided nearly $200 million in savings to industry participants.
Earlier in Waldrop's career, as President of Churchill Downs racetrack, he led the effort to develop a master plan for renovation of the historic Churchill Downs, which led to a $126 million modernization of the facility and paved the way for future capital investments on the property that continue to this day.
Clay Puett Award Recipients:
2021 — Alexander M. Waldrop
2019 — Cella Family
2018 — Joe Harper
2017 — Bob Curran, Jr.
2016 — Pierre Bellocq
2015 — Marylou Whitney
2014 — Mary Scollay
2013 — Michael Blowen
2012 — Sherwood “Chilly” Chillingworth
2011 — The Race For Education
2010 — The Grayson–Jockey Club Foundation
2009 — Richard Duchossios
2008 — Jim McKay
2007 — Stan Bergstein
2006 — Jay Hickey and The American Horse Council
2005 — WinStar Farm
2004 — Trudy McCaffery
2003 — Cothran 'Cot' Campbell
2002 — The Mabee Family
2001 — Joe Hirsch
2000 — John Gaines
1999 — The Vessels Family
1998 — The Brady Family
1997 — The Hancock Family
1996 — The Phipps Family
1995 — Allen Paulson
1994 — Clement Hirsch
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