Churchill Downs officials announced today that the company will suspend racing operations at Churchill Downs Racetrack beginning June 7 through the remainder of the Spring Meet, scheduled to run to July 3.
Live racing at Churchill Downs will be conducted as scheduled this weekend on Saturday and Sunday. The remainder of the race meet will be relocated to Ellis Park Racing & Gaming in Henderson, beginning on Saturday, June 10.
Churchill Downs Racetrack has seen an unusual number of horse injuries over the previous month, resulting in 12 equine fatalities. Following a thorough internal review and concurrent investigations conducted by the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission and Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority, no single factor has been identified as a potential cause and no discernable pattern has been detected to link the fatalities.
Diagnostics testing of the racetrack by experts have not raised concerns and the experts have concluded that the surface is consistent with prior measurements from Churchill Downs in past years.
Even though the investigations and expert reports have indicated no surface issues, in an abundance of caution, and in alignment with a recommendation from HISA, CDI has elected to relocate the meet in order to conduct a top-to-bottom review of all safety and surface protocols and integrity measures in collaboration and consultation with nationwide experts.
Ellis Park traditionally hosts a summer race meet in Kentucky that is scheduled from July 7 to August 27, 2023. The new safety initiatives announced by Churchill Downs earlier this week will remain in effect for the remainder of this meet at Ellis Park.
