Cuomo Authorizes Expanded Attendance at New York Tracks

The New York Racing Association is "tremendously optimistic" about the upcoming Saratoga Race Course summer meet after New York Governor Andrew M. Cuomo announced the state will dramatically increase COVID-19-era attendance capacity limits at tracks and other outdoor large-scale sports and entertainment facilities.

The announcement by Cuomo on May 5 comes in advance of the Belmont Stakes (G1) June 5, and tickets went on sale May 6 to the general public for that leg of the Triple Crown at Belmont Park.

Cuomo's new order permits venue capacity to as much space as is needed to meet the state's social distancing of six feet starting on May 19. Importantly, Cuomo's order permits tracks and other venues to let fully vaccinated fans be spaced next to one another, instead of six feet apart, in areas that are separate from seats for non-vaccinated people. Masks and other health protocols remain in place.

"NYRA joins sports and entertainment venues throughout the state in thanking Governor Cuomo for providing us with the opportunity to dramatically expand capacity beginning on May 19. New York is turning the page on the COVID-19 pandemic, and we are looking forward to a tremendous summer ahead at Belmont Park and Saratoga Race Course,'' NYRA spokesman Patrick McKenna said in a statement.

He noted Belmont began having fans May 1 for the first time in 552 days and that additional tickets are expected to be released soon for the Belmont Stakes.

Under soon-to-be-expiring COVID-19 capacity limits that capped in-person spectators at tracks to 20%, the Belmont Stakes could accommodate about 11,000 spectators, McKenna said. "We look to increase capacity in certain targeted areas in light of the updated guidance,'' he added, though the overall attendance is not expected to rise significantly given the race is only a month away.

"While we determine exactly how this guidance will apply to Saratoga Race Course, which offers a wide variety of differentiated sections and seating options, we are tremendously optimistic about the 2021 summer meet. NYRA is committed to safely welcoming as many fans as possible by utilizing all areas, including the backyard and offering ticket options that are fair and equitable,'' McKenna continued.

He added: "As Governor Cuomo announced yesterday, it's now possible for stadiums and racetracks to open sections at 100% capacity by requiring all spectators within those areas to be vaccinated. Saratoga Race Course is an ideal venue to implement just that approach for the benefit of our fans, the upstate economy, and the Thoroughbred racing industry in New York State."

Cuomo at first announced the COVID-19 in-person capacity change just for the stadiums home to the New York Yankees and New York Mets, two major league baseball teams. Those teams agreed to offer separate seating areas for vaccinated and non-vaccinated fans and to give free tickets to people who got vaccinated at stadium-based sites.

NYRA has been hosting vaccination sites at Belmont and Aqueduct, and those sites will remain operating, McKenna said.