NYRA back on HorseRacing TV

HorseRacing TV on Thursday cleared the final hurdle to resume showing races from the New York Racing Association.

With Aqueduct canceling its Friday card because of an expected snowstorm, the first full day of coverage will be Saturday.

HRTV has been accepting wagers on NYRA since early January but has been blocked from broadcasting the races.

"Wagering is good," said Elizabeth Bracken, NYRA's director of simulcasting, "but wagering without video is difficult."

With the expiration of NYRA's exclusive agreement with Television Games Network at the end of 2007, HRTV hoped to add NYRA to its lineup.

The process required approvals from the regional offtrack betting companies throughout the state as well as the New York State Racing and Wagering Board. Approval from that board on Thursday removed the final obstacle.

HRTV did show Aqueduct's races for several days in January without the ability to offer wagering on the races. At the prompting of the racing and wagering board, NYRA pulled the video from HRTV until all agreements and approvals were in place.