The doctors at the University of Florida’s Racing Laboratory – a division under the College of Veterinary Medicine will have a busy weekend since they will conduct the mandatory lab tests on racing horses that are part of the Kentucky Derby which takes place at the Churchill Downs.

The Kentucky Horse Racing Commission selected the laboratory to acquire samples taken on the horses before and after the horses. This is to ensure that none of the horses participating in the racing games had been injected with performance enhancing drugs.

The veterinarians will gather samples of urine and blood from each racing horse before they assemble at the field and another series of samples will be taken after the race, especially for the winning horse.

These specimens will then be delivered to the racing lab for tests. The preliminary results will be announced within three working days while full results will be available in as easy as ten days. This was revealed by college professor and lab director Richard Sams.

Once the lab results are published and that the winning horse doesn’t have any suspicious drugs in its system, the winner will then get the prize money.

The investigation has started on the startling death of 21 dead racing horses that were transported in Florida earlier this week. The authorities are probing on the possibility that these prized racing horses owned by a Venezuelan team were poisoned.

According to reports, these horses started collapsing on Sunday as they were being unloaded from vehicles at the International Polo Club in Palm Beach. Some horses died on the spot while others succumbed in clinics hours later. State authorities believe that a massive reaction on toxins or food supplements caused the deaths. The state veterinarians are still running tests to come up with official findings.

A spokesman from the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services said that the authorities are looking into possible criminal negligence or deliberate tampering to weaken the chances of the Venezuelan team to win.

The death of the racing horses, owned by Venezuelan business Victor Vargas, coincided with the scheduled play in the finals. The cost of each horse is estimated at $200,000. Vargas was reported to have lost more than $2 million overall.

The team released a statement this week stating that they are coordinating with the authorities with the ongoing investigation.

Financial crisis and competition from neighboring states were the main reasons specified by Churchill Downs Inc. President Bob Evans during a press conference attended by almost all of the racetrack operators in the state of Kentucky on Wednesday, thereby confirming the decline of racing horses.

Evans said during the start of the conference that the problem is very much obvious as all people arrive at the conference “without any horses” at a “beautiful Wednesday.”

The Kentucky Horse Racing Commission granted the cutting of seven horse racing dates to Churchill Downs and lesser competing players forced the operators to conduct races to only four per week.

Neighboring states such as Indiana are now becoming a threat to the horse racing industry as slot machines bloom in those areas where it promises bigger payouts to the clients. This prompted the operators in the state to propose to have expanded gambling in the state.

The attendance of the operators signifies the support for expanding gambling in Kentucky. However, the proposal faces a staunch opponent in the person of Senate President David Williams. There are still no indications if the horse racing industry will remain lucrative with the presence of slot machines in racetracks.

The 135th edition of the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in Florida saw a 5.3 percent decrease in total betting, an indication that the global financial crisis also created an impact in this money-rich horse racing event.

According to reports, the overall horse race betting figures for the 13-race event was $155,969,770, down from last year’s $164,668,176.

If the Derby is excluded, the total betting figures for the first 12 races was $51, 406,269 – an increase of 2.6 percent from last year’s $50,110,812.

Despite this development, there’s still something to smile about in the horse racing industry since the people still breached the 150,000 mark. The Derby itself, which featured the stunning win of underdog Mine The Bird, had 153,563 spectators. The odds were 50 to 1.

Bill Carstanjen, the Chief Operating Officer of the Churchill Downs, Inc., the team is grateful that despite the struggling economy, a lot of people still managed to take part in this event. He also congratulated the team behind Mine That Bird for the historic victory.

The Commonwealth of Kentucky reportedly received $789,241 in revenues from the state’s pari-mutuel betting tax. More than 80 percent of the total betting came from the Kentucky Derby Day race card.

One of the biggest UK-based bookmaker William Hill reported an increase in net revenues despite the global financial crisis that has affected most businesses.

According to reports, the company reported an increase of 6.5 percent during the first quarter compared to the same time frame last year.

William Hill reasoned that favorable horse racing results boosted the net revenues. One notable win was the 100-1 win by Mon Mome at the Grand National. The online betting revenues soared more than 50 percent, thanks to several factors – including acquisitions.

Last April’s horse racing results effectively offset the poor booking revenue results a month before. The cause for the decline at that time was due to the cancellation of several races due to bad weather and several customers have decided to switch to other bookmakers.

William Hill reportedly raised about 350 million pounds from shareholder in a rights issue. The company revealed that the declining credit markets made it difficult to refinance the debts.

With the positive surge in revenues this period, the company is optimistic about favorable horse racing results in the coming months. William Hill currently has more than 2,000 shops in Irish Republic and United Kingdom.

The Hollywood Park, located in Inglewood, California, is in danger of ending its series of horse racing games if a proposed $2 billion real estate project will push through to replace the racetrack.

According to reports, the historic racetrack will be destroyed and replaced with an entirely new landscape thus making a major change of view of the Californian city. The $2 billion plan is scheduled to be deliberated by the City Council officials this week.

Wilson Meany Sullivan, the owner of the racetrack, said that it will develop a residential and retail complex. This will start in a year’s time after the city council gives the green signal to the project. Aside from the commercial structures, the Inglewood property will have waterfalls, lakes and parks for the community.

However, despite these developments, avid horse racing fans will be saddened by the end of the games in the racetrack. The Hollywood park has been featuring horse racing games since the 1930s.

If the council decides in favor of the proposed plan, the horse racing officials will then get six months’ notice to make an exit. This means that the final horse racing games might end as early as December this year.

In an effort to regain the interest of the public to horse racing, the officials in Churchill Downs have decided to conduct live horse racing sessions at night beginning June 19, Friday. The sessions, dubbed as “Downs After Dark,” will run for three nights for the meantime. This move is the first of its kind for the Kentucky Derby’s 135-year history.

The other two sessions will take place on June 26 and July 2. The third and last live horse racing event will serve as a kickoff for the Independence Day weekend. The sessions will start at 6 pm and will each have 11-race card lineup.

Churchill Downs Inc. Senior Vice President Kevin Flanery said that live horse racing has been the core of the establishment’s operations. He added that after more than a century, changes must be made in order to keep up with the customers’ demands.

Some of the best horse racers in the US and abroad are expected to take part in this rare event. The racetrack is said to undergo some changes to fit the night session experience. A red carpet event where customers can walk on by will take place before the sessions.

The horse racing program in the state of Illinois can now see a ray of light following the possibility of four state riverboat casinos sharing a part of their profits to the declining industry.

According to reports, the riverboat casinos located in Joliet, Elgin and Aurora did not get a chance to have their challenge heard by the U.S. Supreme Court in relation to their appeal on the law requiring them to partake a percentage of their profit to the horse racing program of the state.

This means that the racetracks can get up to $80 million in estimated funds that were set aside since 2006. It could go higher now with the interests added. Racetrack owners are now looking forward to the release of funds.
The casinos have reportedly complied with the law by paying about three percent of the company’s takings but with protest. With the latest development, the casino officials have opted not to release a statement.

Riverboat gambling in the state was approved nearly two decades ago. The presence of these gaming venues has affected the horse racing industry with revenues dropping by almost 50 percent each year.

A veterinarian is currently under investigation over allegations of euthanizing a racing horse using a handgun. This incident allegedly took place at a horse racing track in Philadelphia.

According to reports, the Pennsylvania racing officials are currently determining if Dr. Thomas Lurito used a handgun on the thoroughbred used for horse racing games. If found guilty, the doctor could be charged for violating the racing industry rules and regulations.

As of now, Pennsylvania Racing Commission official Chris Ryder said that Lurito is banned from the race track premises while the investigation is ongoing. The incident reportedly took place on June 10. The outcome is yet to be announced by the racetrack officials.

Experts stated that racing horses are usually put down through barbiturates overdose and not through guns since it is prohibited within Philadelphia Park.

Other veterinarians were surprised with the incident and the person being investigated. According to reports, Lurito got his racing commission license in 1995 and has been in the Philadelphia Park for more than a decade. Ryder said that a .22 caliber gun was used to put down the racing horse. The said practice is considered humane in the past but it has been phased out.

Equestrian Australia, the national governing body for equestrian sports in the country, will reportedly implement new dressage tests next month. These updates are said to take place from preliminary to advanced levels.

The  Preliminary (1A – 1D), Novice (2A – 2D) and Elementary (3A – 3D) dressage tests will be divided into four categories while the Medium (4A – 4C) and Advance (5A – 5C) dressage tests will have three. These changes will take place on July 1.

According to reports, the changes mean fresh movements that will test the horses and riders’ abilities. The new movements include turn on Haunches, Renvers and Leg Yields.

Later this month, there will be a Riders and Judges Training Clinic at the Bendick Murrell Recreation grounds. This is an ample opportunity for the participants to familiarize themselves with the changes on the dressage tests. The clinic will have discussions on the new movements and tests.

This event is expected to be attended by junior and adult riding clubs, trainers, community members, coaches and riders.

Equestrian Australia, formerly called Equestrian Federation of Australia, was established in 1951 by Sir Sam Hordern. The name change was made in November last year.