Canada

Andrew Gaughan has been appointed the next Independent Chair of the Ontario Racing Board of Directors. Jamie Martin will be an Executive Consultant to the board. Gaughan became a manager with Woodbine Entertainment Group (then the Ontario Jockey Club) in 1994, and over the next three decades served in senior leadership positions with WEG, Magna Entertainment Corporation, Scientific Games Corporation (NASDAQ listed), and Sportech PLC a UK based publicly traded (LSE) gaming technology business. "Andrew is the ideal candidate to step into the role," said outgoing Independent Chair John Hayes....

GSW Cape Canaveral (Mr. Prospector--Seaside Attraction, by Seattle Slew) passed away at age 26 at Highfield Stock Farm in Canada, where he stood for 14 years. He had been battling severe cellulitis and was humanely euthanized. He was pensioned last fall. Cape Canaveral has been one of the leading sires in Canada since 2008 with 20 crops of racing age, 541 foals, 429 starters, 21 black-type winners, 315 winners of 1,080 races and earnings of over $17.8 million. Out of GI Kentucky Oaks winner Seaside Attraction, Cape Canaveral raced for...

Effective Monday, July 18, 2022, purses at Assiniboia Downs have been increased across the board. The highlights include a 25% increase in maiden special weight races to $20,000 and a 20% hike for open allowance heats for $24,000 while the new minimum purse for 'open' stakes races has been raised to $40,000. "Our community of owners, trainers and jockeys continue to be so supportive of the racing program here," said Darren Dunn, CEO of the Winnipeg, Manitoba-area track. "We are happy to be in a position that we can introduce...

Stacie Clark, operations consultant for the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance (TAA), will be the keynote speaker for OwnerView's in-person Thoroughbred Owner Conferenceat Saratoga Race Course July 25-26, 2022. Clark has been with the TAA since its inception in 2012 and assumed the role of operations consultant in 2014. Previously, she created the first in-house retirement program while serving as Thoroughbred Retirement Program manager at Adena Springs. Clark rode as a jockey in Ontario and was nominated for the 1994 Sovereign Award as Outstanding Apprentice in Canada. When Woodbine Racetrack expanded its...

Woodbine's Senior Vice President of Standardbred and Thoroughbred Racing Jessica Buckley resigned from her position to pursue other opportunities, according to a press release circulated on Twitter Friday. Buckley had been in that role since 2020. Prior to that, she served as President of Woodbine Mohawk Park. "On behalf of our organization, I would like to sincerely thank Jessica for her many contributions to our business, the horse racing industry, Woodbine Mohawk Park, and both our Standardbred and Thoroughbred Racing programs," Woodbine's Jim Lawson said in the release. Woodbine Entertainment...

Owner and breeder Jaime Roth of LNJ Foxwood Stables has been appointed to the Woodbine Entertainment Board of Directors. "Woodbine is excited to announce the appointment of Jaime to its Board of Directors," said Christine Magee, Chair of the Woodbine Entertainment Board of Directors. "We look forward to working with Jaime and will benefit greatly from her expertise as we leverage her horse racing experience to continue to grow the sport of horse racing in Ontario, and our brand and racing product globally." Roth is a graduate of the University...

2nd-Woodbine, C$92,730, Msw, 5-14, 2yo, f, 4 1/2f (AWT), :52.41, ft, 4 3/4 lengths. ADORA (f, 2, Into Mischief--Southern Ring {MGSW-Can, SP-USA, $343,998}, by Speightstown) was heavily favored in this debut and ran to the money with a decisive graduation. Dueling on the front end early, the $450,000 FTSAUG buy sauntered clear with ease in the lane to win by 4 3/4 lengths in :52.41. Delilah's Revenge (Good Magic) closed greenly late to get the better of a photo for second at 44-1 for her freshman sire (by Curlin). The...

Eugene Melnyk, the owner of the Ottawa Senators of the National Hockey League and a prominent horse owner and breeder who was a member of the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame, has passed away at age 62. His death was announced Monday by the Senators, which posted a statement from Melnyk's family on its website, which noted that he died "after an illness he faced with determination and courage." The team did not disclose the exact cause of death. He underwent a liver transplant in 2015. A native of...

The Canadian Thoroughbred Horse Society (Alberta Division) outlined the new Mare Recruitment Program (MRP) offering incentives to mare owners who bring an in-foal mare to Alberta to foal in 2022. The criteria for the MRP program are: Breeders will receive a C$750 incentive for each in-foal mare brought to Alberta. The in-foal mare must not have foaled in Alberta in 2020-21. Mares that were eligible for the HBPA Mare Purchase Program are not eligible for the Program. Maiden mares are eligible for the MRP upon proof that mare resided outside...

The Jockey Club of Canada's Graded Stakes Committee held its annual review of the graded and listed stakes races in Canada and the number of graded stakes in Canada will decrease to 40. The decrease is due partially to individual racetracks choosing to place selected races on hold for the 2022 season and other races that have felt the repercussions of the pandemic. Additionally, two graded stakes races were downgraded. After reviewing the NARC figures and the RQS numbers for all listed and black-type races in Canada, the committee determined...

Ontario Racing's Thoroughbred Improvement Program Committee has approved an additional $200,000 for its Mare Purchase Program, bringing the total to $700,000 after an enthusiastic response from breeders. "The main focus of this program is to give Ontario horse people the opportunity to buy a better mare, and higher quality stock," said David Anderson, Breeder Representative on the Board of Ontario Racing and member of the TIP Committee. "There are people who still want to buy horses, and this will help them." The program applies to the Keeneland January Sale, as...

by Nigel Reid The memory of what COVID-19 restrictions did to Canada's racing industry during the past 18 months, allied to the looming spectre of the troubling new variant, has done little to dispel the general uncertainty surrounding the sport north of the 49th parallel. However, if the results of what was a truncated season are to be believed, there is cause for optimism over the manner in which the sport, especially at the country's flagship Woodbine facility in Toronto, bounced back in 2021. Indeed, rumours of Canadian racing's demise...