Tag: People

The Kentucky Thoroughbred Association (KTA) and Kentucky Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders (KTOB) have announced the election of new members of the Board of Directors.

Members of the KTA/KTOB Board of Directors serve three-year terms and are elected by the full membership of the organization. Online and paper ballots were managed, monitored, and tabulated by Dean Dorton Technology (Dean Dorton Allen Ford, PLLC).

Newly elected KTA/KTOB Board of Directors for 2022 are:

Ned Toffey – General Manager, Spendthrift Farm
Michael Banahan – Director of Bloodstock, Godolphin USA
Fergus Galvin – Partner, Hunter Valley Farm & U.S. Racing Manager, Qatar Racing
Neil Pessin – Thoroughbred Trainer
Tommy Drury – Thoroughbred Trainer

Dr. Stuart Brown, Price Bell, Anne Archer Hinkle, Dr. Natanya Nieman-McMahon, Craig Bandoroff, T. Wayne Sweezey, Jeff Thornbury & Paul McGee were re-elected to the Board of Directors.

In existence since 1967 and 1983, respectively, the KTOB and KTA direct their efforts toward promoting and protecting the Thoroughbred industry by maintaining the highest levels of racing, breeding and training standards in the Commonwealth.

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Trainer George Papaprodromou is having a meet to remember this summer at Del Mar. The native of Cyprus, an island country in the Mediterranean Sea, currently sits fourth in the trainers standings with eight victories, two of which are graded stakes wins.

“It's just my horses right now are doing well,” Papaprodromou said. “They're on top of their form and pretty much ready to go.”

It could also be the result of years of hard work, early wake-up calls and plenty of sacrifice. A lifestyle Papaprodromou knows all too well. He's been involved in horse racing since he was a kid.

“My whole family was into horse racing,” Papaprodromou says. “My father, my grandpa. It was a family thing; I just grew up with it.”

Papaprodromou has a string of 55 horses at Del Mar this summer but training was not his objective when he first came to the United States back in 1996.

“I was a jockey back there (in Cyprus) when I was a teen,” Papaprodromou says. “I had just finished the Army, it's mandatory you have to go in the Army when you're 18. So I finished the Army and my dad was coming to the states to look at a couple of horses to buy, sires to take back home. I ended up coming with him and I decided to stay.”

Papaprodromou says it was a struggle and he had to call a few audibles to stay afloat.

“I tried to ride but I was too big,” he said. “I had the equipment so I galloped horses for some trainers here…(Bob) Baffert and (David) Hofmans.”

Finally, he came up with a plan that would kick start his training career.

“I talked my dad into coming over here to train and then one day I would take over,” Papaprodromou said. “We met with a few owners, got a couple horses and it went from there.”

His father, Andreas Papaprodromou, raced horses on the Southern California circuit from 1997 to 2003. Then it was time for George to take over. There were some lean years for Papaprodromou. He won just nine races in his first four years. But he kept at it and in 2014 struck gold when he claimed a son of Bernardini for $50,000. Imperative promptly won the 2014 G2 Charles Town Classic, giving Papaprodromou his first graded stakes victory. The conditioner would go on to enjoy his best year ever in terms of earnings, until this year.

Papaprodromou surpassed his personal all-time earnings mark with his victory in the G3 La Jolla with Cabo Spirit last Sunday at Del Mar. He now has compiled $1,990,891 in purses in 2022 with at least two horses in the barn that have the potential to add significantly to the sum at the current Del Mar meet. With his win in the G1 Bing Crosby, Kretz Racing's American Theorem earned an all-expenses-paid trip to the Breeders' Cup Sprint at Keeneland in November. In the meantime the son of American Pharoah is being pointed to the G2 Pat O'Brien at Del Mar August 27. Kretz Racing's Cabo Spirit will be pointed to the Caesars Sportsbook Del Mar Derby September 3.

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The board of directors of the Thoroughbred Owners of California (TOC) unanimously named Tim Cohen to fill the board vacancy created by the recent resignation of Mike Harrington.

Per the bylaws, Cohen will be required to run in the 2023 board election.

Cohen, owner of Rancho Temescal located Ventura County, California, runs under Rancho Temescal LLC, often in partnership with his father, Jed Cohen, under the Red Baron's Barn LLC banner. Prior to managing Rancho Temescal, Cohen worked in the hospitality industry, managing luxury hotels and restaurants.

“I look forward to joining the board and further the efforts to improve California racing for all stakeholders,” said Cohen.

Red Baron's Barn LLC and Rancho Temescal LLC were leading owners at the 2021/2022 Winer-Spring Santa Anita meet. They currently own over 75 Thoroughbreds with 55 currently in training. Rancho Temescal LLC, in partnership with others, has campaigned top horses including Grade 1 winner, River Boyne and Grade 2 winner Sharp Samurai.

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Most people will recognize her from her work as a reporter and race analyst on TVG but if Andie Biancone has her way, more will soon get to know her as a trainer of winning race horses at Del Mar.

The 24-year-old daughter of accomplished horse trainer Patrick Biancone is overseeing a small string of her father's horses at Del Mar this summer. Small in numbers, big in names. It includes Diamond Oops, a 7-year-old multiple-graded stakes winner with earnings exceeding $1.4 million.

“He was a little disappointing in the Bing Crosby,” Andie says. “I think he was just a little tired after the traveling and the prep race. We'll probably have to switch him back to the turf which is kinder for him.”

Diamond Oops' resume includes wins in the 2019 G3 Mr. Prospector Stakes at Gulfstream Park, the 2020 G2 Turf Sprint on Derby Day at Churchill Downs and the 2020 G2 Phoenix at Keeneland. But he hasn't been back to the winner's circle since June of last year.

Biancone tends to her horses in the morning, which generally requires a wake-up call before the sun rises. Then she shifts over to her reporter role in the afternoon. It's a tough schedule, one that fellow trainer, Ron Ellis, can empathize with. He did the same thing with TVG for several years until 2020.

“It's a little bit of grueling schedule because there's homework to do for the TV,” Ellis says. “You don't just go straight from working in the morning to the afternoon. It was a hectic schedule but I enjoyed it so it didn't seem like work.“

Andie feels the same way. She says while her long-term goal has always been to become a horse trainer, she hopes to continue doing both. Her father couldn't be more proud.

“My wife was a TV broadcaster for many years,” Biancone says, “and I'm a trainer. So she (Andie) took half and half of us. It's great and we're very happy with her.”

Like many out-of-town trainers, Andie Biancone is here in part because of the “Ship & Win” program that rewards trainers who bring horses from other states. Her job at TVG is another reason and then there's dad.

“My dad always likes to keep the old ball and chain on me,” she jokes. “But I wouldn't want it any other way; this is what I love to do.”

She also loves being at Del Mar.

“It's great here, the barns are awesome, the horses are happy, the track's very bouncy. Yeah, very happy to be here.”

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