Extended stay-at-home order adds to uncertainty at Woodbine

ETOBICOKE, Ontario – The 2021 Woodbine meet was postponed from its scheduled April 17 opening due to a province-wide stay-at-home order declared by the Ontario government that was recently extended from May 6 to May 20. It is a potentially dire situation for the largest track in Canada, which could see its horse population shrink as horses leave for the United States due to the uncertainty regarding when the meet will begin.

The stay-at-home order was initiated because of a sharp increase in COVID-19 cases with variants during the third wave of the pandemic, which has outpaced the rate of vaccinations. Outdoor sports such as golf and tennis have been banned, but professional hockey has continued in an arena setting.

In an interview with Steve Byk on Monday, Woodbine Entertainment CEO Jim Lawson said the situation has been extremely frustrating.

“It feels there’s no resolution in sight,” Lawson said. “We’ve done everything we can to make the case to government on being able to race safely. The facts are all on the table, but they’re just not listening. I know the premier’s office is supportive of getting us going again, but are deferring to the health experts. We’re having trouble [getting] the heath people to understand exactly how horse racing works in the community and how we’ve structured ourselves with protocols.”

Lawson said some Standardbred horsepeople have left sister track Woodbine Mohawk Park, located west of Toronto, for New Jersey and Ohio.

“A lot of the horsepeople have had enough, and I feel for them,” Lawson said. “If people need to go south of the border to make a living, then I get that. We have to start to think about saving the health of this industry in this province. If we lose too many horses in the next few weeks, we’re not going to get going again very easily.

“We have 15 racetracks in this province – Woodbine, Fort Erie, a Quarter Horse track, and 12 Standardbred tracks. There’s going to be some real damage to this industry. Livelihoods will be affected. People are not only concerned, they’re mad.”

Woodbine has continued to operate the backstretch as an essential service for the stabling and care of horses. Training and timed workouts have continued.

Last year’s pandemic-shortened meet went 96 days, from June 6 to Nov. 22. This year’s meet is scheduled to end Dec. 5.