August 28, 2014 — The 2014 Claiming Crown will be held at Gulfstream Park on December 6, 2014, the opening day of Gulfstream’s Championship meet. This year’s addition of the Claiming Crown features several changes. There will be no separate Trainer Nomination deadline as there was in recent years. Instead the Nomination deadline for horses will be November 8, 2014 and the supplemental horse Nomination deadline will be December 3, 2014.
The eight Claiming Crown races will still have total purse money of $1 Million dollars. The “Iron Lady” has been replaced with the “Canterbury”, a five furlong turf sprint for horses that have been entered to be claimed for $25,000 or less since January 1, 2013. The “Glass Slipper”, for fillies and mares three and up was changed to a one-turn mile (from seven furlongs) and the race is open to horses that have been entered to be claimed for $12,500 (instead of $16,000). Both the Canterbury and the Glass Slipper have a purse of $110,000. Nomination Forms, the Summary of the Individual Race Conditions and the Summary of Conditions can be found on the Claiming Crown’s web site, www.claimingcrown.com.
According to Gulfstream Park’s CEO Tim Ritvo, “Gulfstream is proud to kick off its 2014-2015 Championship Meet with the Claiming Crown. Interest continues to grow in the Claiming Crown with both horsemen and bettors. We believe the streamlined nominating process will help horsemen, and the changes in the condition of the two races will further enhance the event and bring more opportunity to bettors.”
Phil Hanrahan, the CEO of the National HBPA, Inc., said “The new five furlong turf sprint should be an attractive race for owners and trainers and should provide a great wagering opportunity for handicappers.” Hanrahan added, “Our goal is to have eight competitive races with full fields and this was the reason we decided to change the Glass Slipper to a one-turn mile.”
Kent Stirling, Executive Director of the Florida HBPA, added “We changed the name of the new race we added to the Claiming Crown last year from the Iron Lady to the Canterbury to honor Minnesota HBPA’s Tom Metzen and Canterbury Park’s Randy Sampson. Without their tireless efforts, the Claiming Crown would never have gotten off the ground and been as successful as it has been over the last fifteen years.”
Dan Metzger, the President of TOBA, stated, “We are extremely appreciative of the support of the owners and trainers who support the Claiming Crown and believe the change in the nomination process and the addition of the Canterbury will have a positive impact on the event, both for the fans and horsemen.”
The Claiming Crown is a “joint venture” between the National Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association and the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association. The Claiming Crown was created to be the claiming horse owner’s Breeders’ Cup; a special racing event, created for the “average owner,” and featuring some of the most competitive horses in the country. The Claiming Crown has been held annually since 1999.
TOBA (www.toba.org), based in Lexington, Ky., was formed in 1961 and is a national trade organization of leading Thoroughbred breeders and owners. TOBA’s mission is to improve the economics, integrity and pleasure of the sport on behalf of Thoroughbred owners and breeders. Projects managed by TOBA include the American Graded Stakes Committee, Claiming Crown, Ownership Seminars, Ownerview.com and the Sales Integrity Program. TOBA provides international representation for U.S. owners and breeders on the International Grading and Race Planning Advisory Committee, International Cataloguing Standards Committee and International Breeders Federation. Thoroughbred Charities of America (TCA) is the charitable arm of TOBA. TOBA is the owner of The Blood-Horse Inc., and is represented on the board of directors of the National Thoroughbred Racing Association and the Racing Medication and Testing Consortium as founding members.
The National HBPA, Inc. (www.nationalhbpa.com), based in Lexington, Kentucky, is the largest Thoroughbred racing horsemen’s representative association in North America, with 29 affiliate organizations in the United States and Canada and approximately 29,000 owner and trainer member horsemen. The NHBPA’s mission is to improve and preserve Thoroughbred horseracing. Big Dee’s Tack & Vet Supplies, Equineline.com, Finish Line Horse Products, Inc. and Horseman Labor Solutions are proud corporate partners of the National HBPA.
GULFSTREAM PARK is a Stronach Group company, North America’s leading Thoroughbred racetrack owner/operator. The Stronach Group racetracks include Santa Anita Park, Gulfstream Park & Casino, Golden Gate Fields, Portland Meadows, Laurel Park and Pimlico Race Course, home of the world-famous Preakness. The company owns and operates the Palm Meadows Training Center in Florida, and is one of North America’s top race horse breeders through its award-winning Adena Springs operation. The Stronach Group is one of the world’s largest suppliers of pari-mutuel wagering systems, technologies and services. Its companies include AmTote, a global leader in wagering technology; XpressBet, an Internet and telephone account wagering service; and Monarch Content Management, which acts as a simulcast purchase and sales agent of horseracing content for numerous North American racetracks and wagering outlets. The Stronach Group is also a major producer of televised horseracing programming through its HRTV cable and satellite network and is North America’s premier supplier of virtual online horseracing games, as well as a leading producer of social media content for the horseracing industry. For more information contact David Joseph at david.joseph@gulfstreampark.com or call 954.457.6451.
The Florida HBPA (www.fhbpa.com), based in South Florida, is one of the largest affiliates of the National HBPA with close to 6,000 members. The FHBPA is a not-for-profit corporation organized to promote and support Thoroughbred horse racing in the State of Florida. The FHBPA serves as a liaison between racetracks and Thoroughbred owners and trainers while serving as an advocate for the health and safety of the race horse. Benefits it offers to its members and their employees include medical, dental, eye-care, educational assistance as well as economic aid for those in need of emergency assistance. The FHBPA also has a charitable arm, the Florida Horsemen’s Charitable Foundation, Inc., and operates the horsemen’s bookkeeper through the Florida Horsemen’s Bookkeeper Corporation.
