Rockingham: $200k race tops meet

SALEM, N.H. - New England's most prestigious turf race, the $200,000 New Hampshire Sweepstakes, headlines a 14-race stakes program slated for Rockingham Park this summer.

The 2002 schedule is virtually identical to past seasons, with the Sweepstakes - New England's only graded stakes on the grass - starting the program June 22. The $75,000 Rockingham Park Breeders' Cup on July 4 and the $100,000 Spicy Living Sweepstakes Aug. 4 will again be offered for fillies and mares on the turf in the middle of the 100-day meet.

The remaining stakes races will carry guaranteed purses of $25,000 each. The meeting runs from June 9 through Sept. 22.