Finger Lakes, Delaware Park cancel racing over air quality
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Finger Lakes Gaming & Racetrack in Western New York canceled its second consecutive day of live racing on Wednesday due to smoke heading southward from wildfires in Quebec, Canada. Delaware Park, also citing air quality, canceled its live cards scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday as well.
Local news sources in the Finger Lakes region said that officials warned on Wednesday that the air quality was unsafe due to the smoke, which has created hazy conditions throughout the northeast. On Tuesday, Finger Lakes canceled its live racing card after only three live races.
“In accordance with [New York State] guidelines due to bad air quality we have canceled racing today at Finger Lakes,” the track said in a statement.
Delaware Park said that it made the decision to cancel the two consecutive cards due to guidelines from the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority and recommendations of state racing commission veterinarians.
At Belmont Park, northeast of Delaware on Long Island and the site of this weekend’s third leg of the Triple Crown, the Belmont Stakes, officials said that they were monitoring the air-quality situation.
“NYRA utilizes external weather services and advanced on-site equipment to monitor weather conditions and air quality in and around Belmont Park,” said Pat McKenna, a spokesman for the New York Racing Association. “Training was conducted normally today, and NYRA will continue to assess the overall environment to ensure the safety of training and racing throughout the Belmont Stakes Racing Festival.”
HISA said in a statement issued on Wednesday afternoon that it was “working with affected tracks to provide guidance” on live racing in the areas affected by the wildfire smoke. The statement noted that HISA does not have a specific rule on air-quality, but it said that its rules require tracks to “develop, implement, and annually review hazardous weather protocols.”
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