Oaklawn owner and president Louis Cella has been named the 2020 Arkansas Democrat-Gazette Sportsman of the Year for his efforts to keep racing going during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The track operated without fans in attendance beginning on March 13, and was able to continue hosting racing through the end of the season. Cella even rescheduled the Arkansas Derby to the first Saturday in May when it was announced that Churchill Downs would postpone the Kentucky Derby.
“In racing, we have an obligation,” Cella told the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. “It's not like a retail store. You send your employees home and good luck and let's talk next week. We have 500 people in the backstretch. We've got 1,500 horses that have to be fed and cared for. We have our own employees, and at that time, we're ramped up to a thousand people. We can't just turn the lights off and say go home. It's not right, and we can't do it.”
Read more at the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.
The post ‘We Have An Obligation’: Louis Cella Named Arkansas Democrat-Gazette Sportsman of the Year appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.
