Hollendorfer Ban Raises More Questions Than It Answers
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MONDAY, JUNE 24, 2019 HOLLENDORFER BAN A LETTER FROM ASCOT: UP THE STRETCH AWARDS by Dave Johnson RAISES MORE QUESTIONS Originally these ATip of the Top Hat@ awards after the five-day Royal Meeting at Ascot were entitled DOWN THE STRETCH THAN IT ANSWERS AWARDS. But since the Ascot homestretch is uphill, I have renamed these presentations as the UP THE STRETCH AWARDS...also known as the AStretchies.@ WALL HORSE AWARD to Nagano Gold (GB) (Sixties Icon {GB}), who might have won the G2 Hawdwicke S. because he was bothered twice by Masar (Ire) (New Approach {Ire}) Saturday. When I was calling races at Fairmount Park and Cahokia Downs way back in the last century, when I would see a horse in real trouble, I would immediately scribble the name on the wall as soon as I shut off the microphone. Yes, the wall was a mess at the end of a season, but I think it showed a profit of horses to watch next time out. Nagano Gold would have been on that wall. He was cut off at the start, lost several lengths, and forced to race far behind in the early going of the mile and a half trip. Cont. p5 Jerry Hollendorfer | Eclipse Sportswire IN TDN EUROPE TODAY The Week in Review, by T.D. Thornton THE WEEKLY WRAP: ASCOT POINT TO POINT Only time will tell if The Stronach Group (TSG)=s June 22 Emma Berry reflects on the highlights of another memorable banishment of trainer Jerry Hollendorfer from Santa Anita Park week of racing at Royal Ascot. and all other TSG tracks is a step in the right direction in terms of Click or tap here to go straight to TDN Europe. improving equine safety in the midst of the California track=s 30-horse fatality crisis. But in the short term, the ruling-off has raised more questions than answers. Chief among them are how did Hollendorfer morph so quickly from a Hall-of-Fame trainer into a persona non grata in the eyes of TSG management? Four horse deaths at Santa Anita in a six-month span were obviously the tipping point. The Los Angeles Times also reported two Hollendorfer trainees have died at TSG-owned Golden Gate Fields during the same time frame. But if TSG wants to create a truly transparent trainer responsibility code, it owes the public--and other trainers stabled at its nationwide portfolio of tracks--more clarity and specifics about what Hollendorfer was allegedly doing that contributed to those fatalities. Did the sheer number of recent fatalities alone trigger Hollendorfer=s ban? Or is the 73-year-old, multi-decade mainstay on the annual North American winningest trainer list simply out of step with the rapidly changing times in terms of horse care? Cont. p3 PUBLISHER & CEO Sue Morris Finley @suefinley [email protected] V.P., INTERNATIONAL OPERATIONS Gary King @garykingTDN [email protected] EDITORIAL [email protected] Editor-in-Chief Jessica Martini @JessMartiniTDN Managing Editor Monday, June 24, 2019 Alan Carasso @EquinealTDN Senior Editor Steve Sherack @SteveSherackTDN Racing Editor Brian DiDonato @BDiDonatoTDN News and Features Editor Ben Massam @BMassamTDN Associate Editors Christie DeBernardis @CDeBernardisTDN Joe Bianca @JBiancaTDN ADVERTISING [email protected] Director of Advertising Alycia Borer Advertising Manager Lia Best Advertising Designer Amanda Crelin Advertising Assistants Alexa Reisfield Amie Morosco Advertising Assistant/Dir. Of Distribution Rachel McCaffrey Photographer/Photo Editor Sarah K. Andrew @SarahKAndrew [email protected] Social Media Strategist In Elmont, NY, six Anna House preschoolers are awarded diplomas on June 18 as they Justina Severni prepare to head off to kindergarten in September at nearby public schools. Also Director of Customer Service pictured are Belmont Child Care Association Executive Director Joanne Adams, Board Vicki Forbes Chairman Michael Dubb, Board President Elizabeth Imperio, Legislator Laura Schaefer, [email protected] and NYRA CEO/President David O'Rourke, who were in attendance to cheer them on. Marketing Manager Thanks to a donation from Floral Park Memorial High School's National Honor Society, Alayna Cullen @AlaynaCullen the graduates were presented with backpacks full of school supplies. | Susie Raisher Director of Information Technology Ray Villa MAJESTIC EAGLE SOARS IN AMERICAN STAKES 7 [email protected] Majestic Eagle (Medaglia d’Oro) got up in the final jumps to Bookkeeper win the GIII American S. at Santa Anita Sunday. Terry May [email protected] ACCLIMATE GOES WIRE-TO-WIRE 8 WORLDWIDE INFORMATION Acclimate (Acclamation) went wire-to-wire to become the first International Editor Kelsey Riley @kelseynrileyTDN graded winner for his sire in Sunday’s GIII San Juan Capistrano S. [email protected] on the closing-day card at Santa Anita. European Editor Emma Berry [email protected] Associate International Editor Heather Anderson @HLAndersonTDN Newmarket Bureau, Cafe Racing Sean Cronin & Tom Frary [email protected] 60 Broad Street, Suite 100 Red Bank, NJ 07701 732-747-8060 | 732-747-8955 (fax) www.TheTDN.com TDN HEADLINE NEWS • PAGE 3 OF 9 • THETDN.COM MONDAY • JUNE 24, 2019 Hollendorfer Ban Raises More Questions People complain endlessly about how racing=s regulatory bodies at the state level are toothless when it comes to getting Than Answers (cont. from p1) rid of rule breakers and problem-causers, because the cases are TSG=s statement issued on Saturday stated AIndividuals who do often appealed, reduced, or overturned via the courts. not embrace the new rules and safety measures that put horse Yet when a racetrack steps up to assert its private-property and rider safety above all else, will have no place at any rights to exclude anyone they like, some of those very same Stronach Group racetrack. We regret that Mr. Hollendorfer=s complainers leap to defend the ruled-off person, pointing out record in recent months at both Santa Anita and Golden Gate how such banishments don=t afford the accused a due-process Fields has become increasingly challenging and does not match shot at defending themselves. the level of safety and accountability we demand. Effective In this case, perhaps it=s telling that the trainers= organization immediately, Mr. Hollendorfer is no longer welcome to stable, that represents Hollendorfer doesn=t even know what to make race or train his horses at any of our facilities.@ of his banishment. Surely there is more to this story. Dr. Dionne Benson, TSG=s Jim Cassidy, the president of California Thoroughbred Trainers recently hired chief veterinary officer, did not return a Sunday (CTT), said in a Sunday phone interview that he can=t comment voicemail message from TDN requesting comment prior to one way or the other on whether the CTT is supportive of deadline for this column. Neither did Hollendorfer. Hollendorfer. But according to Horse Racing Nation, Hollendorfer did say on AThat=s difficult to say,@ Cassidy told TDN. AWe=re going to have the Sunday morning ATrack Talk@ radio show based in San Diego a board meeting later on this week to have a discussion about that Ain our barn, I didn=t break any rules or anything like what we can do, or if there is anything we can say or do. We that...We were totally cooperative with the vets and the people can=t do much since this is private property, and [TSG] can have coming around to look at the horses in every single situation.@ who they want or don=t want here. So there=s not much of legal Racetracks that use Ahouse rules@ to try and weed out alleged consequence that we can do about it. We can make a stink wrongdoers are almost always in a Adamned if they do, damned about it, but it=s just the way it is.@ if they don=t@ situation. Cont. p4 TDN HEADLINE NEWS • PAGE 4 OF 9 • THETDN.COM MONDAY • JUNE 24, 2019 When asked if even the most safety-conscious trainers have developed a mentality that one bad step could ruin their careers and reputations, Cassidy said most CTT horsemen are adapting willingly to the new, hyper-sensitive racing landscape. AMostly, everybody=s taking care of business the way they should be,@ Cassidy said. AThat means everybody is trying to do the right thing. They=ve taken steps here to try to protect everybody and the horses--great steps. As far as the protesters and all of that, we try to ignore it the best we can. Nobody=s happy about it because they think it=s unfair. You just hold your breath and hope everything goes smoothly, day to day to day.@ Jim Cassidy and Tyler Baze | Benoit Asked to comment on whether he felt TSG was shifting the safety narrative away from Santa Anita and putting the onus on trainers, Cassidy said this: AThe racing surface, since we=ve gotten rid of all the rain, has been in great shape. As far as blaming the trainers, it seems everybody wants to blame the trainers, no matter what the situation is. We take [flak] because when one guy has a problem, we=re all pointed at. If people are looking at you with wide eyes, everybody has to be very careful. But even if you=re very careful, you can still have an accident. It=s inevitable. There=s nothing we can do about that. You just have to take all the corrective measures you can to make sure that you=re not doing anything blatant.@ Both TSG and the California Horse Racing Board (CHRB) have mandated a slew of changes to training and racing protocols over the past half year. Is there anything the CTT believes those organizations should be doing differently? ATo be quite honest with you, I don=t know what else they could possibly do,@ Cassidy said.