Beshear 'Going Back and Forth' With Churchill on Racing

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear remains in talks with Churchill Downs officials over when they will be permitted to begin the spring meet at the Louisville oval, but offered no timeline for a resumption of racing in the state during his April 25 daily briefing.

Opening day of Churchill's spring meet was originally slated for Saturday but has been delayed indefinitely due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The track's stable areas—both the backside at Churchill and the adjacent Trackside Training Center—remain shuttered after their annual opening has been delayed. Closed since Dec. 31 for annual winter renovations, the stable areas were originally scheduled to reopen March 17, but that opening was moved to March 31, then to April 14, once again to April 28, and most recently to at least May 5. The Kentucky Derby Presented by Woodford Reserve (G1), originally slated for May 2, has been moved by Churchill to Sept. 5.

"I actually talked with Churchill right before we started this press conference. We are going back and forth," Beshear said Saturday. "Obviously, we are at the height—somewhere in the plateau, but that will be our height—of this pandemic. (Churchill officials) have offered some really detailed proposals, and we're trying to figure out the how and the when that it will be safe. And everybody, the racing industry and public health (officials), want to make sure that it's done safely and correctly."

Live racing has not been conducted in Kentucky since March 25, when Churchill Downs Inc.-owned Turfway Park ended its meet three days early after Beshear urged all nonessential businesses to close because of the coronavirus crisis. While Churchill is working to conduct racing, Keeneland officials were forced to completely cancel their spring meet, although the Lexington oval might seek to race this summer. 

With Kentucky under a state of emergency since early March, Beshear has maintained that strict compliance with state guidelines is necessary to save lives. Nonessential businesses are shuttered and mass gatherings are prohibited, among other restrictions. But Beshear has been moving toward a plan, along with neighboring states, to reopen the regional economies beginning in May. 

Industry supporters like Kentucky State Sen. Damon Thayer (a Georgetown Republican) have been urging the governor to permit the resumption of racing without spectators. Tracks in Florida, Arkansas, Nebraska, and Oklahoma remain open for racing without spectators. 

According to the Kentucky Thoroughbred Association, the racing industry has a $33.6 million impact on employment in the state and generates $115 million in tax revenue annually.