Hastings Racecourse in Vancouver, British Columbia, will no longer conduct live race meets, the track announced on Friday night, a decision hastened by a move last week by the provincial government to cease applying casino subsidies to the racing operation. The decision could spell the end to major live Thoroughbred racing in Canada’s westernmost province after years of struggle. Horsemen at the track are facing the possibility of closing up shop or moving their operations to tracks in the Prairie provinces, farther east in Canada, or south to Washington or other states. David Milburn, the president of the British Columbia Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association, said in an interview on Saturday that the decision to remove the subsidies was a “breach of trust,” and he said that the horsemen’s group has already begun efforts to convince the provincial government to reverse course. “We’re not giving up on British Columbia,” he said. “We’re going to whatever we can to keep racing going here.” Last week, the provincial government sent a letter to horsemen informing them that subsidies from a casino adjacent to the track would no longer be available. The letter cited “challenging” conditions in the province and an economic analysis that determined that the live-racing industry in the province was “not sustainable.”  :: Access the most trusted data and information in horse racing! DRF Past Performances and Picks are available now. “They yanked the rug out from under us,” said Eryn MacDonald, a local trainer, in a social-media post. “We’ve just all lost our total incomes and our jobs.” Hastings is owned by Great Canadian Entertainment, which has reached an agreement to sell the track’s casino to the Tsliel-Waututh Nation. Great Canadian has owned the track since 2004, just prior to the casino being authorized for the track. In a statement, Wayne Odegard, Great Canadian’s regional vice president, said that the decision was “extremely difficult” but said that it was “strictly a business decision based on a lack of economic feasibility to move forward with another season of horse racing.” “Our focus moving forward will be supporting our impacted team members through this transition, as well as racing participants as they assess their options for Thoroughbred racing in the province in the future,” Odegard said. Hastings Park has in recent years hosted approximately 45 days of live racing annually, spread out from May to November, with racing held on weekends. Milburn said that during its peak season, the track had 350 horses on the grounds. Approximately 50 trainers started horses at the meet that concluded earlier this year, with some 200 owners involved in the sport, Milburn said. Hastings closes for training from the close of the meet until February, so no horses are currently located on the grounds. Most are wintered at local farms, Milburn said, though about 10 percent are shipped out to other tracks. Milburn said that over the next several months the horsemen’s organization will focus on communicating the negative economic impact of the provincial government’s decision. He said that British Columbia took in $1.5 billion in net gambling revenues in 2025 from the variety of legal gambling options available in the province, and that the revenue flowing to the racing industry was $9 million. “They’re grabbing whatever money they can because of their budget problems, but they’re not fully recognizing the consequences of the loss of employment or economic activity from Hastings,” Milburn said. Approximately 40 percent of the total purses distributed at Hastings were provided by the casino subsidy, Milburn said, or about $3 million.   Racing throughout North America is heavily reliant on casino subsidies, and lately some governments and even some track operators have been pursuing efforts to “decouple” the subsidies from statutorily required live racing commitments. The efforts have raised concerns throughout the industry, especially on those circuits where the subsidies provide the vast majority of the revenue used for purses. In British Columbia, animal-welfare advocates have long pushed for the government to end its support for racing in the province, and local leaders have also had their eyes on the property for the development of a new stadium for the city’s soccer franchise. “This announcement marks a milestone toward a future in which animals are not bred, used, and put at risk for entertainment,” the Vancouver Humane Society said in a statement. “While perspectives on horse racing vary, we hope all parties share a common priority: ensuring that every horse currently involved in racing is provided with a safe, secure, and compassionate retirement. We encourage the provincial government and industry stakeholders to provide support for both workers and animals alike in transitioning away from the horse racing industry.” :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.