Woodbine: Record Handle for Queen's Plate

Woodbine reported its July 3 Queen's Plate program produced pari-mutuel wagering records and the second-highest attendance in the 157-year history of the race.

Woodbine Entertainment Group, which operates the Ontario, Canada, racetrack, said attendance of 37,063 topped the Queen's Plate crowd of 35,000 in 2015. All-sources handle of $11,839,883 for the 11-race program topped the previous record of $11,064,870 set in 2015.

Single-race handle for the Queen's Plate, first leg of the Canadian Triple Crown, was a record $3,354,822, officials said. The 1 1/8-mile race for 3-year-olds foaled in Canada was won by Ken and Sarah Ramsey's Sir Dudley Digges.

"The 157th Queen's Plate was truly spectacular," WEG chief executive officer Jim Lawson said. "From the racing to the parties to the fashion to the music to the weather, both long-time racing fans and those new to the Queen's Plate experience were treated to a tremendous show. Our efforts to amplify the Queen's Plate to new heights succeeded."

The all-sources handle mark is second only to the $67,738,890 wagered during the one-day Breeders' Cup program at Woodbine in 1996. The Queen's Plate attendance record of 40,137 was set in 1973 when Queen Elizabeth II of England was in attendance.