Ohio Could Authorize Racing Resumption by May 22

During a teleconferenced late-morning meeting of the Ohio State Racing Commission on May 13, chairman Scott Borgemenke suggested that horse racing in the state could be authorized to resume by May 22 without fans in attendance. Commissioners were scheduled to meet again at 7 p.m. ET Wednesday and possibly May 14 to finalize safety protocols and a resolution.

Like many other parts of the country, racing in Ohio has been on hold because of COVID-19. Thoroughbred racing last took place there at Hollywood Gaming at Mahoning Valley Race Course on March 18. Thereafter, the OSRC issued a directive that required tracks that were already open to remain available for training.

Mahoning Valley in Youngstown had been scheduled to race through April 18.

The two Thoroughbred tracks in the state that would normally be running during this time, Belterra Park Gaming & Entertainment Center in Cincinnati and Thistledown in North Randall, have not opened. Belterra was scheduled to run from April 24-Sept. 25 and Thistledown from April 27-Oct. 17.

Some of the horses that might have been stabled at Belterra have remained in training at Turfway Park in Northern Kentucky, awaiting entry into Belterra. 

Asked by Borgemenke if Belterra, owned by Boyd Gaming, had received corporate approval to open its facility, Chris Corrado, the vice president and general manager at Belterra Park, said they were still analyzing updated COVID-19 safety protocols and he was "not at a point today to give you a firm answer."

Belterra, Mahoning Valley, and Thistledown are all operated by casino companies, the latter by Jack Entertainment. All casinos in the state are currently closed.

Speaking later during the OSRC meeting, Dave Basler, the executive director of the Ohio Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association, praised the efforts of Borgemenke in recent weeks to facilitate reopening but took issue with comments during the teleconference.

"When someone tells me that protocols that are (five) pages long that were submitted Thursday afternoon can't be reviewed by the following Wednesday morning, I'm going to have to say that's just not an acceptable answer," he said.

Representatives from harness tracks in the state provided commissioners with more detailed reopening plans, some announcing qualifying races, and targeted reopening dates.