Laurel takes entries; no date set for return

The Laurel Park racing office took entries Tuesday in anticipation of potentially reopening as early as Saturday, but without any guarantees that the Maryland track would be allowed to return to live racing this week.

An overnight sheet for the entries for the “first day – race date to be determined” of Laurel’s condition book was posted online at a site for horsemen late Tuesday. Entries were taken during the day without an official announcement, under the reasoning that the track will need lead-up time if it receives permission soon to return to racing this weekend, according to two racing officials in the state who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan is scheduled to hold a press conference Wednesday afternoon, and racing officials were told within the past week that racing may be able to return as part of the next phase of the state’s reopening plan, the officials said. However, a reopening announcement is not a certainty, according to the officials, due to a spike in cases in the state and in Northern Virginia over the past several days.

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As in other states, a wide range of businesses have been pressuring Maryland’s government over the past several weeks to be placed on the next phase of the reopening list, including racing. State government and health officials have been attempting to strike economic and political balances in their reopening plans, and that has led many representatives of industry groups such as racing to seek low profiles as they lobby for permission to reopen, out of concern about rubbing state officials the wrong way or jumping the gun on an announcement.

Laurel Park’s racing office sent a text message to trainers in the state Tuesday that said the track would accept entries for the first day of the condition book that afternoon, but they did not publicize the process. The entries were not submitted to Equibase, which publishes entry data for all U.S. racetracks after receiving the data files from racing offices.

The first day of the condition book includes 10 races and four alternates. A total of 144 horses, including also-eligibles, were entered in the 10 races. There are approximately 1,300 horses on the grounds at Laurel, which last conducted live racing March 20.

If Laurel is allowed to open, racing will begin Saturday but will be spectator-free for the foreseeable future, the officials said.