| Monday, June 26, 2017 | Contact: Bob Curran Jr. (212) 521-5326 | ||
| The Jockey Club and NAICSC Submit Letters to Pennsylvania State Horse Racing Commission | |||
The Jockey Club and the North American International Cataloguing Standards Committee (NAICSC) have submitted the following two letters, pertaining to the 2016 Parx Oaks, to the Pennsylvania State Horse Racing Commission in advance of its next regularly scheduled meeting (Wednesday, June 28, 2017 at 1 p.m. EDT).
June 14, 2017 Mr. Tom Chuckas Director, Bureau of
Horse Racing State Horse Racing
Commission Pennsylvania Department
of Agriculture 2301 North Cameron
Street Harrisburg, PA 17110 Dear Tom, As the breed registry
for Thoroughbreds in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico, The Jockey
Club (as well as its affiliated organizations) strives on a daily basis to
maintain the integrity of The American Stud Book and all statistics pertaining
to Thoroughbred breeding and racing. That is why I am
writing to voice our strong objection to the Pennsylvania State Horse Racing
Commissions recent decision to declare two winners of the 2016 Parx Oaks. This unprecedented
ruling in regard to the fillies Miss Inclusive and Eighth Wonder has already
caused significant confusion regarding the official Equibase
chart of the race, and it is sure to have further ramifications in the areas of
breeding and bloodstock sales. How can a bettor reading past
performances be expected to comprehend that a race had two winners when the
chart will clearly reveal it was not a dead-heat? How can a stallion owner accurately
assess the quality and racing history of these fillies if someone wants to
breed them to one of his stallions? And how can a prospective buyer of
those two fillies, or any of their eventual progeny, feel confident about the
details listed on their respective catalog pages? In essence, it seems
like the commission has made an arbitrary change to the order of finish, which
sets a harmful precedent for the adjudication of future medication overages. It has also damaged the
image and integrity of our sport, not only in Pennsylvania but in the other 37
jurisdictions in this country where Thoroughbred racing takes place. On behalf of The Jockey
Club, I respectfully encourage the Pennsylvania State Horse Racing Commission
to include a reconsideration of this decision as an agenda item for its June
28, 2017 meeting with the hope that it will ultimately alter its decision and
declare one official winner of the 2016 Parx Oaks. Please feel free to
contact me if you have questions or would like to discuss this matter further. Sincerely, James L. Gagliano President and Chief
Operating Officer The Jockey Club
June 16, 2017 Mr. Tom Chuckas Thoroughbred Bureau Director State Horse Racing Commission 2301 N. Cameron Street Room 304 Harrisburg, PA 17110 Dear Mr. Chuckas: I am writing on behalf of the North
American International Cataloguing Standards Committee (NAICSC) to express our
concern with the action taken by the Pennsylvania State Horse Racing Commission
with regard to the official order of finish for the 2016 Parx
Oaks. NAICSC establishes
the requirements for non-Listed races in North America that receive black-type
in sales catalogues that are compliant with guidelines required by the Society
of International Thoroughbred Auctioneers (SITA). The first three finishers in approved races
receive black-type in sales catalogues. The first place horse is recognized as
the winner and the second and third place horses are recognized as placed. This
international standard is accepted world-wide and the importance of the proper
recognition of black-type cannot be understated as it plays a key role in the
conduct of Thoroughbred sales. The Commissions decision of having two winners
without a dead heat, as well as moving the third place
finisher to second and fourth place finisher to third, misrepresents black-type
in sales catalogues by designating two winners and includes four horses in the
first three positions. This artificial manipulation of the results is
misleading, confusing and factually incorrect. NAICSC respectfully requests that the
Pennsylvania State Horse Racing Commission reverse the decision for the 2016 Parx Oaks and declare one winner of the race. The current decision which designates two
winners without a dead heat and four horses in the top three positions
misrepresents the outcome of the race and related black-type in sales
catalogues. Thank you for your consideration of our request
and please contact me if you wish to discuss this in further detail. Yours
sincerely, Carl
Hamilton Chairman,
NAICSC | |||
