Tag: The Biz

Amplify Horse Racing and MyRacehorse are pleased to announce “Amplify Junior, Sponsored by MyRacehorse” – a partnership that will deliver a children's educational tour series to Kentucky. The exciting new initiative will teach young children and their parents and guardians about the Thoroughbred horse racing industry.

Founded in 2019, Amplify Horse Racing is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit promoting education and careers in the Thoroughbred industry to youth and young adults through mentorship, in-person and virtual programming. Amplify works in partnership with the Kentucky Equine Education Project (KEEP) Foundation to deliver its Kentucky-based initiatives.

The synergy between Amplify and MyRacehorse – whose platform launched in 2018 to make owning racehorses both affordable and fun for the masses ­– is perfect for spearheading the new junior program for children 12 and under, which will feature monthly educational tours from April through October at iconic locations in Kentucky, including Keeneland Race Course, Fasig-Tipton Sales Company, and Taylor Made Farm.

Each of the seven destinations will include a tour of the facility and hands-on engaging activities for children to learn about horses and the life cycle of the Thoroughbred. MyRacehorse and Amplify personnel will be onsite to host tours and enhance learning alongside facility representatives.

“This collaboration between MyRacehorse and Amplify perfectly aligns with our mission to bring all the fun, excitement, and opportunity that the Thoroughbred racing industry has to offer,” said MRH CEO and Founder, Michael Behrens. “To be able to educate a younger generation of fans, who may become industry participants in the future, is a very worthwhile endeavor.”

“Amplify Horse Racing is excited to be working with MyRacehorse on expanding our educational programming to include children 12 and under,” said Annise Montplaisir, Amplify President and Co-Founder, and Equine Education Coordinator for the KEEP Foundation. “Developing a passion for horses frequently happens at a young age, so we look forward to cultivating the interest of the children and families who participate, and sharing our own love of the horse.”

Registration for the first event on April 23 at Godolphin's Gainsborough Farm will open in the coming days. For more information about the program and to view the complete list of tour destinations, visit https://www.amplifyhorseracing.org/amplifyjunior, or contact info@amplifyhorseracing.org.

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Woodbine Entertainment, in partnership with Century Mile, today announced the winner of the Grade 3 Canadian Derby will be awarded free entry to the Grade 3 Ontario Derby, with potential of earning a $50,000 bonus.

The G3 Canadian Derby will be run on Aug. 20, 2022, at Century Mile in Edmonton, Alberta. The winner of the race will receive free entry to the G3 Ontario Derby on Oct. 23, 2022, at Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto, Ontario. If a horse can win both events, the winning connections will receive a bonus of $50,000, split evenly by Woodbine and Century Mile.

“This exciting initiative provides a great opportunity to connect our sport across the country and further develop the Canadian Thoroughbred industry,” said Tim Lawson, Director of Thoroughbred Racing for Woodbine. “The Canadian Derby has a rich history, with many notable past champions, and we're looking forward to welcoming this year's winner to Woodbine for the Ontario Derby.”

Paul Ryneveld, Managing Director of Racing at Century Downs and Mile, echoed Lawson's sentiments.

“Developing this East-West relationship in Canada will go a long way to strengthening the opportunities for horsemen and ultimately the wagering product across the nation.”

The G3 Canadian Derby is open to 3-year-olds and run at a distance of a mile and a quarter on the dirt surface at Century Mile. The G3 Ontario Derby for 3-year-olds is run at a distance of a mile and an eighth over the Tapeta surface at Woodbine.

Woodbine Racetrack will launch its 2022 Thoroughbred season on Saturday, April 16. Century Mile will begin its 2022 Thoroughbred season on Saturday, April 30.

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Morning training is winding down just as it starts to get busy on a routine Thursday at the Northwell Health/Backstretch Employee Service Team (B.E.S.T.) Healthcare Clinic on the Belmont Park backstretch.

First up are two annual physicals, one for a 56-year-old assistant trainer and the other for an exercise rider, a 20-year veteran of New York racetracks. Both men are run through a battery of tests and pronounced healthy, but not before the medical staff engage them in vigorous discussions about everything from their diets to diabetes prevention.

“Serving the backstretch is about a lot of things, from giving physicals to taking care of work-related injuries and being an advocate for healthy living,” said Dr. Margaret Donat, one of the four rotating Northwell physicians at the clinic. “But when you see somebody getting control of an issue like blood pressure or cholesterol, it's important. I like to think we're making a difference.”

Belmont Park's 1,000-square-foot health care clinic goes back decades. But after the clinic closed for several months during the COVID-19 pandemic, it reopened last September under new management – this time, newly renovated, staffed with Northwell physicians, and fortified by what B.E.S.T. Executive Director Paul Ruchames described as a growing emphasis on healthy living and preventive care.

“This is real community medicine,” said Ruchames. “The clinic is here to deal with the injuries, which it has always done. But what we're seeing are more people coming in for physicals, and more people interested in learning how to adopt a healthier lifestyle to keep more serious things from happening later.”

He referred to several new offerings for backstretch workers, just as live racing returns to Belmont Park for its spring/summer meet – starting with free screenings for breast and colon cancer and a new mental health therapist.

Launching this month are classes on ergonomics led by a Northwell physical therapist. Underway are discussions to convert an occupied parcel of land on the backstretch into a working farm for greens and other vegetables that would be distributed to backstretch workers.

The clinic and new offerings are the latest evolution of Northwell's growing relationship with the backstretch community. It dates to 2020 when Northwell began providing COVID-19 testing for backstretch workers at Belmont Park, and followed up in 2021 with COVID-19 vaccines. More than 90 percent of the hundreds of backstretch workers based at Belmont are vaccinated, which is well above the New York State average.

The clinic, instantly recognizable by the oversized racing murals on its outside wall, offers patient hours three days a week – soon be to expanded to five – and referrals to specialty services as needed. There are two exam rooms and lab services for point-of-care testing. Some services, such as physicals, need to be reserved. Walk-ins are welcome for care related to work injuries, like horse bites and kicks.

“What's exciting about working at Belmont Park is how much we're learning about how to better serve the men and women there,” said Dr. Tochi Iroku-Malize, the clinic's medical director and Northwell's senior vice president and chair of family medicine. “We're confident that we'll continue to develop services that meet their needs.”

Spreading the word on the backstretch about the new service offerings and the enhanced clinic is crucial, said Ruchames. He credited word of mouth and fliers on the cancer screenings with helping – along with what he called a new spirit of cooperation and collaboration among B.E.S.T, NYRA and other non-profit organizations on the backstretch.

Ruchames referred to NYRA's “Preparedness and Response Plan Committee,” which formed in 2020 in response to the onslaught of challenges of the COVID 19 pandemic. Comprised of key NYRA staff members and B.E.S.T., along with representatives of New York Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association (NYTHA), and the New York Race Track Chaplaincy, the committee used an effective team approach in dealing with urgent health issues, both big and small, by holding daily conference calls and responding as needed to mitigate the impact of COVID-19 on the backstretch community.

“The committee's decision-making process made us closer and more aware of one another's roles at the racetrack,” said Ruchames. “I think that's helped with the referrals and more people encouraged to visit the clinic and find out what's happening there.”

Exercise rider Kevin Soodoo said he was happy to be at the clinic for his annual physical.

“This is an important place for those of us making our living on the track,” he said. “I'm confident that I'm getting good treatment.”

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Wayne Potts, one of six trainers recently denied stalls at New York Racing Association tracks and facing a 30-day suspension at the start of the 2022 race meet at Monmouth Park, has been suspended 45 days by the New York State Gaming Commission for possession in his tack room at Aqueduct of a drug not approved by the FDA for use in Thoroughbreds.

The ruling, issued on Sunday, April 3, listed Feb. 17 as the “occurrence date” for the infraction. The drug type discovered was not revealed in the ruling.

Potts has been ordered to serve the suspension from April 10 through May 6 and from June 6-23. He already is scheduled to serve 30 days from May 7-June 5 – the first month of the Monmouth Park meet, for failing to obey the regulatory veterinarian, who ordered Potts-trained Chispita to be loaded onto the horse ambulance after a race. Potts allegedly told his assistant to ignore the order. Chispita was claimed in the race and the claim would automatically be voided if taken off the track by ambulance. The regulatory veterinarian ultimately voided the claim.

Potts was also suspended 20 days in New York last year for violating claiming rules and received a 15-day suspension for a medication violation in New Jersey. In 2020, he was excluded by management at Maryland Jockey Club tracks for allegedly operating as a program trainer for Marcus Vitali, who was also banned by the MJC. In 2019, Potts was suspended in Delaware for non-payment of invoices from a veterinary firm. Three years before that, Potts was fined in Maryland for operating his racing stable without workers' compensation insurance for nearly seven months. It was only after an exercise rider was injured that it was discovered that the workers' comp policy had been cancelled.

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