Aqueduct, on deck as temporary hospital, cancels remainder of spring meet

With Aqueduct Racetrack having been approved for use as a temporary hospital to help New York state deal with the coronavirus pandemic, the New York Racing Association on Saturday officially canceled the remainder of the Aqueduct spring meet.

NYRA on Wednesday had announced it had suspended racing operations through April 5, which included a postponement of the Grade 2, $750,000 Wood Memorial, scheduled for April 4. Now, the remaining two weeks of the meet, which was scheduled to end April 19, have been canceled. Thus, 19 days of racing have now been canceled due to the coronavirus outbreak.

Racing is scheduled to move to Belmont Park on April 24, but even that date is in question.

“NYRA is continuing to strategize the safest options for a return to racing at Belmont Park, while prioritizing the health and welfare of our staff and the racing community,” NYRA president and CEO Dave O’Rourke said in a press release. “A revised live racing schedule is an ongoing consideration, but secondary to our primary commitment to the health and well-being of the community.”

New York officials plan to use 100,000 square feet at Aqueduct – a combination of indoor and outside space – to set up a hospital that would serve the borough of Queens with a 1,000-plus patient overflow facility.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo is preparing for a worst-case scenario in which he estimates New York would need approximately 140,000 hospital beds, including 40,000 intensive-care unit beds. Cuomo said New York currently has 53,000 hospital beds and 3,000 ICU beds.

Through Friday, there were, 44,635 positive cases of coronavirus in New York, nearly 30,000 of those in New York City. Cuomo needed federal approval to use Aqueduct – and three other sites he selected throughout the five boroughs of the city – and on Saturday Cuomo said he received that approval from President Donald Trump.

Cuomo reported that New York state has had 728 deaths due to the coronavirus.

Though there has been no racing on this circuit since March 15, training has continued at Belmont Park under a bevy of health and safety protocols. There have been six confirmed cases of coronavirus on the Belmont backstretch and those individuals have been quarantined.

NYRA has reverted to a six-day training schedule, beginning tomorrow, there will be no training on Sundays.