HBPA

Woodbine, which cancelled both racing and training effective two races before the end of Saturday's card after three separate incidents on the Tapeta surface, will reopen to training Wednesday morning and is scheduled to resume live racing Thursday. The all-weather surface underwent "a thorough review and extensive maintenance conducted over the last couple of days," said officials from Woodbine Entertainment in a Wednesday afternoon release. "The safety of our horses and riders is our highest priority and we have been working diligently over the last couple of days to ensure...

The final two races on Saturday's live racing program at Woodbine outside of Toronto, including the GIII Autumn Stakes, were cancelled "in the best interest of equine safety," according to a release from Woodbine Entertainment Group. The decision was taken following consultation with the local Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association, the Jockeys' Guild and the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO). The track successfully staged two of the three graded events carded for Saturday, the GIII Maple Leaf Stakes and the GIII Bessarabian Stakes. The Autumn Stakes will not...

With three separate requests involving three different federal appeals court cases pending before the Supreme Court of the United States to take up the question of whether or not the Horseracing and Safety Integrity Act (HISA) is constitutional, the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority on Wednesday told the nation's highest court that the one involving a lawsuit spearheaded by the National Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association (NHBPA) is the one that should take precedence. In two separate legal filings Nov. 6, the Authority made its case for the Supreme Court...

A contentious, years-long legal battle over the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) appears headed for a showdown in the highest court in the land. At the opposite ends of any future court ruling is one that could essentially impact just the future of horse racing, or one that could take a wrecking ball to various core pillars of modern life. Industry players' stance on HISA can probably be boiled down into three main camps: those who are in ideological lock-step with the new federal body of governance; those who...

A legal filing made Tuesday by horsemen who lost a decision last month in a federal appeals court means there are now three separate cases involving the constitutionality of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) vying for the attention of the Supreme Court of the United States. A group of plaintiffs led by Bill Walmsley, the president of the Arkansas Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association (HBPA), and Jon Moss, the executive director of the Iowa HBPA, on Oct. 15 filed a writ of certiorari asking the Supreme Court to...

by Jennie Rees, Jon Moss, Peter Ecabert "Eric Hamelback is only carrying out the democratically elected National HBPA board's wishes But no one is more passionate, tireless or bleeds and agonizes more about working for real solutions to our industry's complex problems than Eric." The following was written by Jennie Rees, Jon Moss and Peter Ecabert. The opinions expressed are their own. The National HBPA, of which Eric Hamelback is the CEO and which represents state HBPA affiliates, is virtually the one Thoroughbred entity that has stood up to challenge...

Horseracing and Safety Integrity Authority chief executive Lisa Lazarus on Monday sent a letter to Alan Foreman, the chairman of the Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association (THA), warning THA members of "potentially significant disruptions" to the industry based on the HISA Authority's interpretation of legal strategies being pursued by the Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association (HBPA). With an application by the Authority pending in the United States Supreme Court that would stay a Horseracing and Safety Integrity Act unconstitutionality mandate that has yet to be released by the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court...

The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit on Friday affirmed a ruling out of a lower federal court in Arkansas that had denied a preliminary injunction sought by horsemen in Arkansas and Iowa to halt the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) and its Anti-Doping and Medication Control (ADMC) program. Chief Judge Steven Colloton took the lead in authoring the opinion for the three-judge panel, writing that the plaintiffs/appellants have "not established a fair chance of success on the merits, so the district court did not abuse...

On Friday--the final day of the National HBPA Conference at Prairie Meadows--a panel entitled "Establishing No-Effect Thresholds and the Importance for the Industry" was led by practicing equine veterinarian and researcher Dr. Clara Fenger. She cited the Horseracing Integrity & Safety Authority's enabling legislation that HISA-covered horses "should compete only when they are free from the influence of medications ..." (her emphasis added). Fenger's point: Testing many substances to limit of detection--if the lab can find it, it's a violation, no matter how tiny the amount and whether it impacts...

Horseshoe Indianapolis took part in an evening of activities linked to the World Jockey Challenge Saturday with funds and awareness being raised for the Permanently Disabled Jockeys Fund (PDJF). "We are honored and proud to support the jockeys who ride our horses," said Vice President of the Indiana Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association Jeri Harmon. "These jockeys are part of our business, so being able to assist with such a worthy cause is important to all the owners and breeders in our organization." The Indiana Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association...

Woodbine has canceled Sunday's race card due to the extreme heat forecasted for the Toronto area. The release noted that the decision was made in consultation with the HBPA and the commissioned veterinarian with the safety of the horses and all racing participants a top priority. The Victoria Stakes has been rescheduled to Friday, July 19. Live racing at Woodbine is scheduled to return on Thursday, July 18 with first post at 4:50 p.m.

The July 5 opinion out of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit that declared that part of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (HISA) is unconstitutional is generating legal filings from both sides in a related case awaiting a decision in the Eighth Circuit. Both the plaintiffs/appellants in the Eighth Circuit case (led by Bill Walmsley, the president of the Arkansas HBPA, and Jon Moss, the executive director of the Iowa HBPA) and the defendants/appellees (executives with the HISA Authority and the Federal Trade Commission [FTC]),...