Woodbine Entertainment provided the following update on the 2020 Thoroughbred meet:
Despite efforts to gain approval from the Government of Ontario to safely complete the 2020 Thoroughbred meet, we have made the decision to officially cancel the remainder of the season.
“While I am extremely disappointed we are not able to complete the 2020 Thoroughbred meet, what we achieved this year in face of significant adversity is quite remarkable,” said Jim Lawson, CEO, Woodbine Entertainment. “I have been around horse racing my entire life and I can proudly say that I have never seen the industry come together as it did throughout this year.
“Together, we were able to develop, implement and follow strict COVID-19 Prevention Protocols that allowed us to be the first sport to return to competition in Canada since the shutdowns in March,” said Lawson. “We safely resumed racing in early June and ran almost 100 racing cards, more than 900 races, and the majority of our stakes schedule, including the 161st running of The Queen’s Plate.
“We hope the Government of Ontario has gained a better understanding of our business and appreciation of our safety record in operating live racing without spectators.”
In a Thursday afternoon tweet Lawson also commented: “Personal apologies to our Woodbine horse community for the uncertainty that you endured all week. I had conversations on Tuesday that left me optimistic to save our season and since then, still no official response–we are releasing our decision to cancel. #thankyou”
More from Industry:
