As it was this time last year, the Equestrian Integrity and Safety Authority will be at the forefront of the discussions as the University of Arizona Racetrack Industry Program hosts its annual Global Symposium on Racing. on December 5-7.
HISA CEO Lisa Lazarus will deliver remarks from 8:30-9 a.m. MST on Tuesday following the opening day of pre-conference industry meetings and workshops on Monday. Then, on Wednesday afternoon, a panel will cover the implementation of HISA’s Race Safety Program and preparations for the launch of the Drug Control and Anti-Doping Program, which will go into effect on May 1. January.
The legality of the action to authorize HISA is also the number that will be discussed following a November 18 ruling from the US Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals that the action is fundamentally unconstitutional.
“It’s the 800-pound gorilla in the room. People will want to know how they’re going to proceed,” said Robert Hartman, president of UA RTIP. Note that HISA officials may be limited in their comment due to pending. lawsuit, litigation.
Appeals to that court decision, as well as other HISA-related legal cases working their way through the legal system, can be binding in the court system for months.
If the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals decision is in effect, it will not take effect until January 10 at the earliest, after the planned start of the ADMC Program earlier in the year.
Ann McGovern, HISA’s director of track safety who oversees the ADMC Program, was among the speakers for Wednesday afternoon’s discussion, along with the Horseracing Integrity & Welfare Unit or directors. HISA executives Kate Mittelstadt, Ben Mosier, Dr. Mary Scollay and Dr. Susan Stover.
These speakers and other representatives from HISA or HIWU will be available to chat directly with attendees in the Santa Rita Room at the conference.
While HISA will be the top topic of discussion at the conference at the Loews Ventana Canyon Resort in Tucson, Ariz., it is just one of many topics covered during the symposium, which RTIP calls the grand symposium. racing industry, with around 550 attendees expected this year.
Gulfstream Park RTIP graduate and track broadcaster Pete Aiello—potentially one of the most popular on the three-day conference. Aiello took video clips of some of Durkin and Johnson’s most memorable calls to share with the audience.
Hartman, a graduate of RTIP and now leading the sophomore program, said: “This is going to be a really special moment to reminisce and walk down that memory trail.
Also on Tuesday is an awards luncheon, during which Cody Dorman will be presented with the 2022 Big Sport of Turfdom award by Turf Publicists of America. Big Ass Fans’ Cup Winner Dirt Mile (G1) Cody’s Wish Named after a teenager who was born with the rare genetic disorder Wolf-Hirschhorn syndrome and his relationship with Cody’s Wish is one of the great stories of 2022. Dorman will be with his family to receive the award, Hartman said.
Wednesday’s program began with the three most important presentations by three UA RTIP students and the 2023 legislative outlook by Tom Rooney, president & CEO of the National Purebred Racing Association.
After that, the panel begins with race success stories—years re-evaluated; expanding the reach of the race: strategies for diversity and inclusion; illegal betting threat to the racing industry; a conference Turf Publicists of America explores the importance of social networks in horse racing; and equestrian roundtables prior to the ADMC Program discussion.
The panel that explores the threat of illegal betting to the racing industry will also address group manipulation, which occurred in the quinella pool during the first race at Gulfstream Park on November 11, resulting in the remove the offer of that bet.
“I think you’ll hear a lot about the true role of betting tracking, betting monitoring—in all areas, not just the legal market, but the illegal market, its role and the threat it poses to the industry,” Pat Cummings, executive director of the Purebred Ideas Foundation, said during a video conference hosted by UA to preview the symposium.
Pat Cummings at the 2019 Global Racing Symposium
Cummings was one of three speakers on that panel, which was moderated by Curtis Linnell, executive vice president of the Department of Purebred Racing Protection.
Equestrians will also have their moment during a roundtable in which Pete Fornatale, co-founder of In the Money Media Network, acts as panelist alongside bettor, owner Horse owner and economics professor, Dr. Marshall Gramm. Jessica Paquette, who this fall became a racetrack announcer at The Parx . Racemild.
The symposium, held since 1974, attracts attendees representing racing and casino interests, both nationally and internationally. Speakers include many industry leaders and experts from outside the field.
For those unable to attend the symposium, Roberts Communications Network will stream it on the Racetrack Television Network, with proceeds from the sale going back to UA RTIP.
