Horse Racing To Resume At Laurel Park After Suspension To Address Fatal Injuries
LAUREL, Md. (WJZ) -- Horse racing will resume Thursday afternoon at Laurel Park Race Track after a nearly two-week suspension.The Maryland Jockey Club canceled racing at Laurel Park Dec. 3 to address Laurel Park's track after a series of injuries to racehorses. At least eight horses suffered fatal injuries at the track in October and November."We can't allow this to continue to happen," Maryland Racing Commission Chair Michael Algeo said Tuesday. "If you think a horse is lame, if you think a horse has a problem, please don't allow the horse to run, because it won't be about track issues at that point."Commission member Dr. Tom Bowman laid out some procedural changes to the commission, which includes regularly reporting track conditions."This last collection of tragedies should have been forewarned when the horsemen started screaming that the racetrack was too fast," Dr. Bowman said by phone Tuesday.Two-year-old gelding "American Playboy" suffered a fatal injury Nov. 28, the most recent of the fatal injuries to spur the suspension of races.Workouts were held through the weekend to gauge the cushion and condition of the racing surface.Several jockeys told the MRC Tuesday the track was in significantly better condition than before the suspension.
