Alex Foley hired as Kentucky Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association executive director

Alex Foley, the son of trainer Greg Foley and a graduate of the Brandeis School of Law at the University of Louisville, has been hired as the executive director of the Kentucky Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association, the organization announced Tuesday.

Foley, who started Monday, fills a position that was vacated when the Kentucky HBPA’s longtime executive director, Marty Maline, retired at the end of 2022. Maline was the executive director for 46 years.

Foley, 32, has been most recently working as an assistant trainer to his father. Foley’s brother Travis also is an assistant to his father, and their aunt, Vickie Foley, is a trainer, as was Foley’s grandfather Dravo.

Rick Hiles, the Kentucky HBPA’s longtime president, said that Foley was interviewed recently by the organization’s search committee, which was impressed by “him and his credentials.”

“He’s a young man, he’s got a history in racing from his dad and grandpa,” Hiles said. “He knows everybody on the backside. He has a law degree. We thought he could get in that position and have some longevity.”

The Kentucky HBPA represents the interests of Kentucky horsemen in negotiations with tracks over purse agreements and racing conditions. In addition, the executive director typically represents the Kentucky HBPA when liaising with legislators, racing commissioners, and regulators. The organization also plays a significant role in distributing and maintaining benefits to backside workers.

“The horse racing industry and my legal background, I’ve always wanted to do both but didn’t have the avenue,” Foley said, in a press release distributed by the Kentucky HBPA. “This job provides that. The connections I have on the backside – whether it’s horse trainers, gallop boys, assistants – I’ve known so many people that it was a perfect fit and something I’m passionate about.”

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