Portuondo Leaving Woodbine

Jason Portuondo, the longtime on-air simulcast host at Woodbine Entertainment, will be leaving the organization after the June 26 show. Portuondo, who has been with Woodbine since 2014, has accepted a role with the AGCO as a Racing Official.

“Jason has been a big part of our racing product over the years and represented our brand, our sport, and our industry with professionalism, enthusiasm, and integrity,” said Jim Lawson, CEO, Woodbine Entertainment. “Although we will certainly miss Porty, it's comforting to know he will remain in our industry, and we will all continue to see him around our racetracks. On behalf of our industry and our fans, I would like to thank Jason for all of his contributions throughout his years at Woodbine and wish him good luck in his new endeavour.”

Woodbine Entertainment has started a search for an on-air simulcast host.

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100 Nominated to ’22 Canadian Triple Crown

One hundred of the top Canadian-bred 3-year-old Thoroughbreds have been nominated to the 2022 Canadian Triple Crown. Woodbine Entertainment released the nominations for the three-race series, which consists of the Aug. 21 Queen's Plate, Sept. 13 Prince of Wales S. and culminates with the Oct. 2 Breeders' S.

The total number of nominees is down from last year's high of 125, but up from only 92 in 2020.

Among the top nominees to the series are: Messier (Empire Maker), Ironstone (Mr Speaker), God of Love (Cupid), The Minkster (English Channel), and Silent Runner (Silent Name {Jpn}).

Nominations were also released for the 67th running of the Woodbine Oaks, presented by Budweiser. Sixty-five Canadian-bred fillies have been nominated for the Oaks, which will be run July 24.

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TAA Auction Raises over $35,000

The Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance's Off to the Races online auction, which closed Feb. 10, raised $35,125. From Jan. 28 to Feb. 10 the public had the opportunity to bid on experience packages on 12 major race days in 2022 and 2023. Each experience package offered a unique itinerary of horse racing-related bucket list activities and tickets to the specified race day(s).

In total, 23 donors contributed to the 12 experience packages offered in the TAA's Off to the Races auction: 1/ST, America's Best Racing, Anne's Washington Inn, Breeders' Cup Ltd., Christine A. Moore Millinery, Christine Lee's Restaurant, Churchill Downs Inc., Del Mar Thoroughbred Club, Fran Taylor and Tom Cheek, Frank & Dino's Restaurant, Hilton Aventura Miami Hotel, Keeneland Association, LongRun Thoroughbred Retirement Society, Monmouth Park, Mt. Washington Tavern, National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame, New York Racing Association, Oaklawn Racing Casino Resort, Old Friends, Pamplemousse Grille, Second Stride, The Honorable Earle I. Mack, Win Place Home, Woodbine Entertainment.

“Thank you to everyone who participated in our first annual Off to the Races online auction and a huge thank you to our racetrack and industry sponsors who made this event possible,” said TAA president Jeff Bloom. “These VIP experiences are truly a one-of-a-kind opportunity for racing fans–with the added bonus of all funds raised going to support the thousands of Thoroughbreds in the care of TAA-accredited organizations. We look forward to growing the event in the years to come.”

Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that accredits, inspects, and awards grants to approved aftercare organizations to retrain, rehome, and retire Thoroughbreds using industry-wide funding.

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Breeders Crown Returns To Woodbine’s Mohawk Park In 2022

The $6.7 million (USD) Breeders Crown, harness racing's richest and most prestigious year-end divisional championship series, returns in the last weekend of October 2022 to Woodbine Mohawk Park in Campbellville, Ontario, Canada.

Eliminations, if necessary, for freshman races will be held Friday, Oct. 21, with three-year-old and older eliminations raced Saturday, Oct. 22. Finals for two-year-olds get underway the next Friday, Oct. 28 with sophomore finals and open events following on Saturday, Oct. 29. All Breeders Crown divisions are now guaranteed at $600,000, with the exception of the Open Mare Pace and Trot which have been raised to a minimum of $350,000.

Woodbine Entertainment last hosted all 12 events in 2019, smashing handle and attendance records at the seven-eighths mile track, with $11.1M wagered over the four fall nights. The 2019 events were capped by a sensational victory in the Crown Trot by French star Bold Eagle, who retired with earnings of $5,878,322.

The 2019 Breeders Crown at Woodbine Mohawk Park also initiated the successful and subsequent three-year sponsorship of the Libfeld-Katz Breeding Partnership, which was also responsible for creating and executing the Breeders Crown Charity Challenge. The Breeders Crown Charity Challenge, brainchild of breeder/owner Marvin Katz, has since raised over $800,000 in three years, supporting numerous local charities in Crown host track communities.

Woodbine Entertainment has hosted more Breeders Crown events than any other venue at their tracks of Woodbine, Mohawk and Greenwood, for a total of 152.

“The Woodbine name is recognized as one of harness racing's leading brands and we are excited and proud to partner with them and bring the Breeders Crown series back to Canada,” said John Campbell, President & CEO of the Hambletonian Society, which owns and administers the races.

“Woodbine is thrilled to welcome back the Breeders Crown to Woodbine Mohawk Park this October,” said Jim Lawson, CEO of Woodbine Entertainment. “Hosting the Breeders Crown continues our commitment to a world-class racing product, and we're focused on once again producing an exceptional two-night event showcasing the very best in our sport.”

The Breeders Crown series has typically crowned champions in every division for trotters and pacers and been the deciding factor in Horse of the Year honors.  A Breeders Crown title is one of the most coveted honors in harness racing.

The Hambletonian Society is a non-profit organization formed in 1924 to sponsor the race for which it was named, the Hambletonian Stake. The Society's mission is to encourage and support the breeding of Standardbred horses through the development, administration and promotion of harness racing stakes, early-closing races and other special events.   For more information, visit www.hambletonian.com.

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