David J. Stern, widely credited for building the model for professional sports in league operations, public service, global marketing and digital technology over the course of a three-decade tenure as commissioner of the National Basketball Association (NBA), will discuss the global growth and success of the league during his tenure and its potential relevance to Thoroughbred racing in a special question-and-answer session at the Pan American Conference during the first week of June at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in New York City.

The Jockey Club, the breed registry for Thoroughbreds in North America, and the Latin American Racing Channel (LARC) are co-hosting the conference. It begins Wednesday, June 3, 2015, and concludes Saturday, June 6, with the running of the 147th Belmont Stakes. All business presentations are scheduled for Thursday, June 4, and Friday, June 5.

A partial list of topics and speakers, registration information, and further details are available at panamnyc2015.com.

Stern, who stepped down and became commissioner emeritus in February 2014,  oversaw the NBA’s extraordinary growth with seven new franchises, a more than 30-fold increase in revenues, a dramatic expansion of national television exposure, and the launch of two leagues, the Women’s National Basketball Association and the NBA Development League. He implemented the first anti-drug agreement in professional sports and introduced the salary cap system and revenue sharing to the NBA.

The NBA experienced tremendous global growth during Stern’s tenure. The NBA has 12 offices outside the United States, its games and programming are televised and streamed in 215 countries and territories in 47 languages, and it offers fans 19 international online destinations. The NBA was the first U.S. professional sports league to stage regular-season games outside North America, and the league has featured more than 150 international preseason and regular-season games to date.

Stern also oversaw the launch of the league’s digital assets, including NBA.com, WNBA.com, and NBADLeague.com; social media platforms; NBA LEAGUE PASS; NBA TV; and mobile applications, all of which reach hundreds of millions of fans every day.

Under his leadership, the league launched NBA Cares, a global social responsibility program that builds on the NBA’s mission of addressing important social issues in the United States and around the world. NBA Cares supports a host of community outreach initiatives, including a myriad of internationally recognized youth-serving programs that focus on education, youth and family development, and health and wellness.

Stern was enshrined in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2014 and is a 2013 recipient of Harvard University’s W.E.B. Du Bois Medal.

He has served on the boards of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, the Martin Luther King Jr. Federal Holiday Commission, the Thurgood Marshall College Fund, the Paley Center for Media, Jazz at Lincoln Center, and the Global Business Coalition on HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. He is also a member of the Council on Foreign Relations.

A native of New York City, Stern is a graduate of Rutgers University and Columbia Law School.

Ben Vonwiller, a partner at McKinsey & Company, will moderate the question-and-answer period with Stern.

Previously announced speakers include David Howman, director general of the World Anti-Doping Agency; Jorge Luis Batlle Ibañez, the former president of Uruguay; Louis Romanet, the chairman of the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities; and Frank Stronach, the founder and honorary chairman of The Stronach Group.

The organization and agenda for the Pan Am Conference are being developed by Horacio Esposito, the president of LARC; Pablo Kavulakian, director of LARC; and James L. Gagliano, president and chief operating officer of The Jockey Club. 

Early registration for the conference has been extended through Wednesday, May 13, 2015. The cost is $1,150 for delegates and $800 for accompanying guests.

The conference will focus on many key international areas across the two days of the business program, including

• Globalization of Thoroughbred breeding and the Importance of the North American and South American Regions
• The Pattern System
• Delivering International Racing and Content to Bettors and Fans
• New Technologies in Racing and Sports
• Enhancing the Racing Customer Experience
• Global Measures to Racing Integrity
• Reforming Medication Rules: Approaches in South America

Presenting sponsors of the conference include LARC, The Jockey Club (through its commercial subsidiaries and partnerships America’s Best Racing, Equibase Company, InCompass Solutions, The Jockey Club Information Systems, and The Jockey Club Technology Services), Totepool, Club Hipico Santiago, Hipodromo Chile, Hipódromo de Monterrico, Jockey Club Brasiliero, Keeneland Association, Samuel and Guillermo Liberman, Maroñas Entertainment, The New York Racing Association Inc., PMU, Sport Mediastream, The Stronach Group, UTTA (Unión de Trabajadores del Turf y Afines), and Valparaiso Sporting Club.

On-site sponsors of the conference include Amtote International, Breeders Cup Limited, Daily Racing Form, Encompass Digital Media, Florida Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders’ Association, Kentucky Thoroughbred Association and Kentucky Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders, Longitude, Roberts Communications Network, Stoll Keenon Ogden PLLC, Woodbine Entertainment Group, and Yonkers Raceway.

Exhibitors and lounge sponsors at the conference include CHRIMS Inc., Coolmore America (Ashford Stud), Carrus - The Parimutuel Company, Keeneland Association, LARC Track Maintenance, New York Thoroughbred Breeders, Inc., NTRA Advantage, The Jockey Club, and Sportech PLC.

The Latin American Racing Channel broadcasts the most important horse races from Latin America to the world and offers racetrack maintenance and consulting services to a wide range of industry organizations. Additional information is at larchannel.com.

The Jockey Club, founded in 1894 and dedicated to the improvement of Thoroughbred breeding and racing, is the breed registry for North American Thoroughbreds. In fulfillment of its mission, The Jockey Club, directly or through subsidiaries, provides support and leadership on a wide range of important industry initiatives, and it serves the information and technology needs of owners, breeders, media, fans and farms. Additional information is available at jockeyclub.com.