Woodbine Reaccredited by Safety Alliance

The National Thoroughbred Racing Association announced that Woodbine Racetrack in Rexdale, Ontario, near Toronto, has earned reaccreditation from the NTRA Safety & Integrity Alliance.

The track that opened in 1956 bearing a name associated with racing in the area since 1874 begins its live Thoroughbred racing season April 9 with the unveiling of a new synthetic Tapeta racing surface. The 133-date meet—with racing Fridays to Sundays, Wednesday nights starting May 18, and some holidays—runs through Dec. 4.

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

"Everything that we do here is done with safety, integrity and transparency in mind," said Woodbine director of racing and racing secretary Steve Lym. "Our hope and expectation is that if a trainer or owner is looking at coming here they can research our record, learn about all of our best practices and have confidence that Woodbine will do right by their horses. That information can help them make a decision to apply for stalls somewhere they haven't been stabled before."

Woodbine's 1 1/2-mile E.P. Taylor Turf Course is to the outside of the newly-installed Tapeta track, which replaces a Polytrack surface that was among the first synthetic tracks of any kind when introduced at Woodbine in 2006.

"My numerous personal experiences with Woodbine have been, over and over again, that the right way is the only way ever considered for moving forward," said Safety and Integrity Alliance executive director Steve Koch. "I think Woodbine's multi-million dollar investment in a brand new surface is a bold continuation of that theme. And their persistence in setting best practice examples in numerous sections of the NTRA Safety & Integrity Code of Standards further confirms that theme."

Woodbine received its initial accreditation in 2010. All accreditations and reaccreditations carry an effective period of two years.



Woodbine is one of 23 racing facilities fully accredited by the Alliance that together host 94% of hrade I stakes and attract more than 70%of North American pari-mutuel handle.