Page 14 - March 2009 The Game

14 The Game, March 2009
Woodbine announces 2009 Thoroughbred stakes schedule
Canada’s Thoroughbred Racing Newspaper
Woodbine’s 2009 Thoroughbred stakes schedule, released February 6 by Woodbine Entertainment Group, spotlights 103 races, worth over $22 million in purses.
takes centre stage. The Grade 1, $1 million E.P. Taylor Stakes, for llies and mares, and the Grade 2, $500,000 Nearctic Stakes, a six-furlong turf dash, are also slated for International Day.
million racing day on Sunday, September 20. The Grade 1, $750,000 Northern Dancer Turf Stakes and the Grade 2, $300,000 Canadian Stakes, for turf llies and mares, will also be contested on Mile day.
The 2009 season will feature an historic moment in the history of Canadian racing. The highly- anticipated Sunday, June 21 renewal of the Queen’s Plate will mark the 150th consecutive edition of the grand race.
All three added-money events, like in 2008, are part of the Breeders’ Cup Challenge Series, which features a lucrative “Win and You’re In” incentive that is certain to attract a strong cast of participants.
“The Mile has always been an attractive event on our calendar,” Lym said. “With the Northern Dancer fully entrenched as a Grade 1 race and the two ‘Win and You’re In’ two-year-old races on Saturday, it makes for a tremendous weekend of racing.”
The 1 1/4-mile event, worth $1 million, is Canada’s most renowned horse race, North America’s oldest continuously-run stakes event and the rst jewel in Canada’s Triple Crown of Racing.
A score in the International, the E.P. Taylor or the Nearctic guarantees the victor a berth in the corresponding championship event, three weeks later, at the Breeders’ Cup (November 6 & 7) at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, California.
The Grade 2, $250,000 Sky Classic Stakes is slated for Sunday, August 23. With the new date, the Sky Classic, in combination with the Northern Dancer, creates a natural two-race, $1 million route to the Pattison Canadian International.
The $200,000 Scotts Highlander Stakes and the $150,000 Singspiel Stakes, both Grade 3 turf races, will complement the Queen’s Plate day programme.
“We are excited with our 2009 stakes schedule,” said Steve Lym, Woodbine’s Director of Racing and Racing Secretary. “Our turf stakes have always been popular with fans and horsemen. Our scheduling gives stars crowned on International day the opportunity to go for glory in the Breeders’ Cup.”
The $500,000 Woodbine Oaks, presented by Budweiser, the rst leg in the Canada’s Triple Tiara of Racing, is scheduled for Sunday, June 7.
The Toronto oval’s richest event, the Grade 1,
$2 million Pattison Canadian International, will take place on Saturday, October 17. The 1 1/2-mile grass event headlines a stellar autumn card during which the world renowned E.P. Taylor Turf Course
ESPN, the prominent U.S. TV sports network, will again broadcast all three International day “Win and
The Grade 3, $250,000 Selene Stakes for three- year-old llies, traditionally a prep for the Oaks, will now take place on Saturday, September 26. “We moved the graded Selene to give it more prominence on the schedule. It should get plenty of attention as a signature fall race for three-year-old llies with its big purse,” Lym said.
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You’re In” events, live from Woodbine.
The Woodbine stakes calendar also features
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On Saturday, September 19, the sport’s ‘young guns’ receive their own day to showcase their turf talents in the $300,000 Summer Stakes, a Grade 3 grass test for two- year-olds, and the Grade 3, $150,000 Natalma Stakes, for two-year-old llies.
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three other “Win and You’re In” events, all turf contests carded on the same September weekend.
The Breeders’ Stakes, third and turf gem of racing’s Triple Crown, is set for Sunday, August 2 at Woodbine. The 1 1/2-mile event carries a purse of $500,000.
The weekend’s third Breeders’ Cup Challenge race is the $1 million Woodbine Mile, the highlight of a lucrative $2-plus
For a complete look at the schedule, please visit www.woodbineentertainment.com.