Industry Executives Want Focus on Opening Belmont Park

A top racing industry official in New York said the first order of reopening the Thoroughbred industry in the state should be focused on more immediate plans by the New York Racing Association for Belmont Park.

"Let's get Belmont open before we start speculating on Saratoga,'' Joseph Appelbaum, the president of the New York Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association, said of increasing talk about whether NYRA's lucrative summer meet will start in July in Saratoga Springs.

Appelbaum believes a one-step-at-a-time approach is crucial if racing is to resume in New York; officials hope Belmont can be restarted and that the industry can demonstrate that racing in New York, the nation's epicenter of the COVID-19 pandemic, can be done safely for industry employees. If that proves to be the case, then plans, based on the Belmont experience, can be discussed for Saratoga Race Course, Appelbaum believes.

The NYTHA leader's comments were made after New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo raised doubts April 29 about whether the COVID-19 pandemic will be lessened enough by this summer to permit racing at the storied upstate track. On Wednesday, NYRA officials said they are asking state officials to permit them to start racing at Belmont Park soon—though without fans on the grounds. The spectatorless model is one NYRA is looking to replicate at Saratoga this summer.

Appelbaum said NYTHA "actively supports" NYRA's plan for restarting Thoroughbred racing in New York. "The return to live racing is critical to the continued good welfare of our horses and the employment and health of our workers. NYRA's common sense approach is only a marginal increase in activity involving a small fraction of the horses that we are caring for every day,'' he said.

Racing was shut down at Aqueduct Racetrack last month, but training activities at NYRA have continued. NYRA said the resumption of racing, using safety protocols already in place, will not result in a significant increase in personnel allowed on the grounds at Belmont if the state Gaming Commission approves NYRA's plan for the Nassau County track.

The care of animals has been deemed an essential industry in New York during the COVID-19 emergency, which means horses still have to be fed and exercised and treated for illnesses. But with the access to racing purse money cut off since Aqueduct shut down, Appelbaum noted that trainers, owners, veterinarians, and others reliant on that flow of revenues have had to dip into their personal savings to keep horses cared for and pay the salaries of workers who handle the range of routine care each day.

"Many of our members are at the breaking point financially, and a timely return to racing will ensure continued horse care and employment for the hourly workers at Belmont Park,'' Appelbaum said.

The NYTHA president, who owns a company that breeds Thoroughbreds, manages racing partnerships, and sells horses with an operation in Ocala, Fla., and headquarters in Manhattan, called NYRA's racing resumption plan comprehensive and experienced-based. "We are confident that the continued application of these safety protocols will control the rate of COVID-19 infection,'' he said.

Also supporting NYRA in reopening racing is the New York Thoroughbred Breeders, a Saratoga Springs-based organization.

Unlike sectors that the state deemed "nonessential," which means those employers must keep 100% of their workers at home until the COVID-19 order is lifted, the Thoroughbred horse industry is classified as essential.

"Whether or not live racing is being conducted, the backstretch workers care for horses in the same way and under the same conditions every day and will continue to do so,'' said Jeffrey Cannizzo, the executive director of the breeders' group.

He noted NYRA created a Preparedness and Response Plan Committee, which is ensuring workers follow state and federal rules about social distancing and other COVID-19 workplace protections. The committee is also charged with plans to address any new virus outbreaks at NYRA tracks.

"It is appropriate, and timely, to now restart racing at the NYRA tracks,'' Cannizzo said.

While the New York breeding industry has endured other periods of economic hardship, like after the Great Recession, Cannizzo added he is concerned the equine industry could lose much of the financial gains it has achieved in the past decade. Specifically, the growth achieved from video lottery terminal revenues, derived from tracks such as Aqueduct, that have rewarded breeders with higher values for New York-bred yearlings.

"We cannot allow COVID-19 to cause a reversal in this progress for the equine industry. With racing shuttered, there is no source of revenue for our industry to pay bills, continue employment, and support farm-related services. The many small owners and breeders that make up our great sport are on the brink of bankruptcy. The only way we can keep them in business, fueling this agricultural economic engine, is opening racing at New York's historic racetracks,'' Cannizzo said.