Deford to speak at Hall of Fame ceremonies

Eclipse Award-winning sportswriter, commentator, and movie author Frank Deford will be the featured speaker at the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame Induction ceremonies to be held Aug. 6 at 10:30 a.m. at the Fasig-Tipton Co. Sales Pavilion in Saratoga Springs, N.Y.

Deford, a member of the National Association of Sportscasters and Sportswriters Hall of Fame, won Eclipse Awards in 1975 and 1984 for Sports Illustrated articles on Thoroughbred racing.

Aside from his work for Sports Illustrated, Deford also has written 13 books, two of which, "Everybody's All-American" and "Alex: The Life Of A Child," have been made into motion pictures. Another, "Casey on the Loose," is being adapted for Broadway.

This year's Hall of Fame inductees are jockey Earlie Fires, trainer Richard Mandella, and the horses Holy Bull, Paseana, and Maskette. Trainer Tom Smith, whose election to the Hall of Fame was announced last year, will also be formally honored.