Charles Town cancels racing following coronavirus positives; will reopen Nov. 19

Charles Town racetrack in West Virginia is going on hiatus for two weeks after a jockey and an employee in the jocks’ room at the track tested positive for coronavirus, track officials said Thursday.

All live race cards are being canceled through Nov. 14, the track said. Charles Town’s next scheduled live card after that date is Nov. 19.

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Erich Zimny, Charles Town’s vice president of racing operations, said that all riders based at the track will have to quarantine until live racing resumes. Charles Town has had a closed jockey colony since the track implemented protocols in the summer following outbreaks elsewhere in the racing industry among riders.

The track will ask the West Virginia Racing Commission to allow it to add four race days to its schedule in late November and December to make up for the lost racing dates, the track said. The new cards would be held on Nov. 25 and Dec. 2, 9, and 16.

Charles Town is one of the few racetracks that has opened its track to spectators. Live racing has been conducted on a Thursday through Saturday schedule prior to the just-announced closure.