Turfway Park Reaccredited by Safety Alliance

Turfway Park near Florence, Ky., has earned reaccreditation from the National Thoroughbred Racing Association's Safety and Integrity Alliance, the NTRA announced April 1.

April 2 marks the 45th running of Turfway's signature event, the $500,000 Horseshoe Casino Cincinnati Spiral Stakes (gr. III), which highlights a 12-race card with three stakes, also including the $100,000 Bourbonette Oaks (gr. III). The Spiral and Bourbonette are preps for the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (gr. I) and Longines Kentucky Oaks (gr. I), respectively.

The reaccreditation of Turfway was the culmination of a lengthy process that began with the track's completion of an extensive written application and continued as the track hosted several meetings with Alliance officials. An on-site review included inspections of all facets of the racing operations. Interviews were conducted with track executives, racetrack personnel, jockeys, owners, trainers, veterinarians, stewards, and regulators.



The inspection team was comprised of Dr. Jennifer Durenberger, veterinary and regulatory consultant with past experience as a state veterinarian, track veterinarian, steward, and regulator; Jim Gates, racetrack operations consultant and former general manager of Churchill Downs; Mike Kilpack, security and integrity consultant, and past chairman of the Organization of Racetrack Investigators; and Steve Koch, executive director of the Safety and Integrity Alliance.

Alliance certification standards address an extensive list of safety and integrity concerns within six broad areas: injury reporting and prevention, creating a safer racing and training environment, aftercare of retired racehorses, uniform medication and testing, jockey health and welfare, and wagering security.

"We are proud to have been accredited by the NTRA Safety and Integrity Alliance at its inception, and equally proud to have stepped up as the bar has been raised for reaccreditation," said Turfway general manager Daniel "Chip" Bach. "The safety of the horses who race at Turfway, and the horsemen and riders who bring their business here, is paramount to us. Protecting the wagering public, who also do business with us, is equally important. Racing thrives when standards are high, and we fully support the Alliance's efforts to foster those standards industry-wide."

Turfway received its initial accreditation in 2009, the Alliance's first year. All accreditations and reaccreditations carry an effective period of two years.



"We commend Turfway Park for their consistently high standards for safety and integrity initiatives," Koch said. "Chip's team exhibits true passion for a job done right and they are dogged in their pursuit of industry Best Practice standards. Turfway Park sets a wonderful example of a hard-working racetrack getting it right."



Turfway is one of 23 racing facilities fully accredited by the Alliance that together host 94% of grade I stakes and attract more than 70% of North American pari-mutuel handle, according to NTRA.