Trainer Santino Di Paola, 23, records first win

ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Santino Di Paola, a 23-year-old trainer, recorded his first career win Nov. 26 when D’s Double Eagle rallied from off the pace under jockey Emma-Jayne Wilson to win by a head in an $8,000 maiden claimer over seven furlongs on Woodbine’s Tapeta.

“I didn’t really think he got it, to be honest,” Di Paola said. “It’s a great feeling to win, but it really topped it off when the whole Woodbine community started blowing up my phone.”

Di Paola, who’s been around the sport his entire life, said he decided he wanted to become a trainer after college. He currently trains for York Tech Racing Stable, which is owned by his parents, Carmen and Raffaela Di Paola. Di Paola said his parents have been involved in horse racing for more than 40 years and have been very supportive.

“They’ve been great,” he said. “We’ve had 14 in this year. A couple of babies had to go home, but we’ve been relatively injury free. They’ve got some new stock coming in next year.”

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As a condition of his license, Di Paola was required to train privately for his parents this season, but he is hoping to expand his stable and go public next year.

“We made a deal with [the Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association] that I train privately for York Tech, which is my parents,” he said. “After the first year, if we do well enough, they’ll let me go out and be a public trainer. I’m pretty sure we did well enough. We had a bunch of seconds, thirds, and fourths.”

Di Paola said he was hoping to have a string of 16 to 20 horses at Woodbine next season. He has a team of five people working with him, including his brother Joey and sister Teresa.

“With my parents involved, we’ll probably have 12 and then fill the rest with everybody else,” Di Paola said. “I have a big crew, but I’m very hands on.”