Woodbine Entertainment | Horse Racing Free Tips

Woodbine Officials Set Thursday 6 P.M. Deadline For Government Talks On Racing Resumption

Woodbine Entertainment provided the following update on the 2020 Thoroughbred meet:

We are continuing our efforts to gain approval from the Government of Ontario to safely complete the 2020 Thoroughbred meet.

Based on the timing of these ongoing efforts, live racing on Saturday, November 28, has been cancelled.

Should Government permit us to safely resume live racing, Sunday, November 29, would be the earliest date. The Race Office would open on Friday, November 27 at 6 a.m. for entries.

Furthermore, if Woodbine Entertainment is permitted to complete the 2020 Thoroughbred meet, it will endeavor to reschedule the cancelled races.

Woodbine Entertainment has committed to make a final decision on the status of the season by 6 p.m. ET on Thursday, November 26. We sincerely appreciate the patience from our community.

As per the Grey (Lockdown) phase of the Government's COVID-19 restrictions which went into effect on Monday, November 23, at 12:01 a.m., the stabling and training of horses is permitted at Woodbine Racetrack, but live horse racing is not.

Since being permitted to race without spectators in early June, Woodbine Entertainment has demonstrated that live racing poses no greater health risk to participants than training. Furthermore, it believes it has clearly demonstrated an ability to safely operate live racing without spectators during that time.

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Woodbine Hopes To Resume Racing Nov. 28, If Government Gives Permission

Woodbine Entertainment confirmed this evening that it continues to have productive conversations with senior levels of the Government of Ontario regarding the possibility of being permitted to complete the 2020 Thoroughbred meet at Woodbine Racetrack.

As per the Grey (Lockdown) phase of the Government's COVID-19 restrictions which went into effect on Monday, Nov. 23 at 12:01 a.m., the stabling and training of horses is permitted at Woodbine Racetrack, but live horse racing is not.

Based on the timing of these ongoing conversations, live racing on Thursday, Nov. 26 and Friday, Nov. 27 has been cancelled. Should Government make the decision that live racing is permitted to safely resume, Saturday, Nov. 28 would be the earliest date. This would require entries to be submitted on Thursday morning.

Furthermore, if Woodbine Entertainment is permitted to complete the 2020 Thoroughbred meet, it will endeavour to reschedule the cancelled races.

Woodbine Entertainment will continue to provide updates as they become available.

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Government ‘Lockdown’ Forces Early End To Woodbine’s 2020 Race Meet

As a result of the Government of Ontario's announcement on Friday that Toronto will be entering the Province's grey “Lockdown” phase of coronavirus-related restrictions, Woodbine Entertainment announced that Sunday, Nov. 22, will be the last day in 2020 of Thoroughbred racing in the Province.

“We have been, and continue to be, extremely supportive of the Government's efforts to reduce the spread of COVID-19 throughout our Province and appreciate the many difficult decisions they have to make,” said Jim Lawson, CEO, Woodbine Entertainment. “We have approached the Government to explain the impacts this decision will have on our business and the horse racing industry in Ontario. With a better understanding of our operations and based on our safety record in operating live racing at our racetracks, we hope that the Government will consider these impacts in the future and assist us in managing the potentially devastating impact to horsepeople and animal welfare this early shutdown will cause.”

The cancelled race cards (12) at Woodbine Racetrack represented a significant opportunity for horsepeople to earn purse money that is critical for their livelihoods and the welfare of their horses as they enter the off-season for Thoroughbred racing in Ontario.

“Our organization's sole mandate is to sustain the horse racing industry that supports the livelihoods of 20,000 families throughout the Province,” mentioned Lawson. “Woodbine Entertainment is the engine of that industry and this early shutdown further impacts our business.”

Woodbine Entertainment has approximately 1,300 employees either temporarily or permanently laid off as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. This shutdown of racing also negatively impacts the approximately 2,000 horsepeople on the Woodbine backstretch, putting many of them out of work.

The recent “Lockdown” restrictions prohibit live racing although do allow for training to continue; however it is expected that training will be wound down this week.

“Since we started racing at Woodbine and Mohawk Park in early June, we have demonstrated that racing without spectators poses no greater health risk to participants than training,” said Lawson. “We have been a leader in health and safety since the beginning of the pandemic and we are extremely proud of our record and the cooperation of our racing participants in maintaining safe racing environments.”

Woodbine Entertainment will provide further updates on Monday regarding the closure of the season at Woodbine Racetrack.

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COVID-19: Woodbine Seeks Clarification On Ontario Premier’s Lockdown Order

Woodbine Entertainment issued a statement Friday saying it was “working to understand the implications” of an order issued by Ontario Premier Doug Ford that put the Toronto and Peel Regions of the province in a strict lockdown under the government's color-coded system developed to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Woodbine is located in the Toronto Region in the city of Etobicoke.

According to Ontario's COVID-19 response system – with five colors ranging from green for prevent to grey for lockdown – horse racing will not be permitted (though training can continue) when the “grey” lockdown goes into effect on Monday, Nov. 23. The new measures are expected to last a minimum of 28 days, through Dec. 21. The Woodbine meet is scheduled to close Dec. 13.

“The situation is extremely serious and further action is required to avoid the worst-case scenario,” Ford said when announcing the measures. The order also closes restaurants, non-essential retail stores, meeting and event spaces, and indoor sports and fitness centers. Outdoor gatherings are limited to 10 people.

Woodbine issued the following statement after the lockdown order: “Since the beginning of our province's fight against the COVID-19 pandemic earlier this year, our commitment to public safety has not wavered. We are extremely supportive of the Government's efforts to reduce the spread of COVID-19 throughout our community. Furthermore, we are very proud of our safety record at Woodbine Racetrack and Woodbine Mohawk Park in this regard.

“To that end, we are currently working to understand the implications this recent news will have on Thoroughbred racing at Woodbine Racetrack and the thousands of people it supports throughout the province.

“We will provide further updates at the appropriate time.”

Racing will be conducted on Saturday and Sunday. Saturday's “super Saturday stakes program” features three graded stakes and kicks off at 1:25 p.m. ET.

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