Horse racing paused due to poor air quality two days ahead of Belmont Stakes

The thick smoke from Canadian wildfires that has enveloped the northeast claimed another, although temporary, victim on Thursday as Belmont Park canceled all training and racing for the day.

It was supposed to be the first of the three-day Belmont Stakes Racing Festival. The two stakes races, the Grade 2 $200,000 Wonder Again and $150,000 Jersey Girl, will now be run on Sunday.

“Safety is paramount as we navigate this unprecedented situation,” said David O’Rourke, New York Racing Assn. president and chief executive. “NYRA will actively monitor all available data and weather information as we work toward the resumption of training and racing both here at Belmont Park and at Saratoga Race Course. Based on current forecast models and consultation with our external weather services, we remain optimistic that we will see an improvement in air quality on Friday.”

The hope is that a storm system off the northeast coast will move away starting Friday, the wind pattern will change and the smoke will stop covering cities from New York all the way down to Washington. The smoke won’t dissipate; it will just linger in a different part of the country.

The current air quality conditions are considered the worst in the northeast in more than 20 years. Finger Lakes, near Rochester, N.Y., canceled racing on Wednesday and will resume on Monday. Delaware Park suspended its racing on Wednesday and Thursday. Penn National canceled Wednesday racing and is expected to make a decision soon regarding Thursday racing.

The Horse Racing Integrity and Safety Authority (HISA) issued the following statement:

“HISA does not have a specific rule regarding air quality but HISA’s Racetrack Safety rules require racetracks to develop, implement, and annually review hazardous weather protocols. HISA supports the use of the Air Quality Index as published at airnow.gov to guide decisions about training and racing. Air quality can vary significantly between tracks, and the authority to alter training and racing schedules ultimately lies with the individual jurisdiction and racetrack.”

The one-day suspension of training is not expected to affect any of the horses scheduled to run in Saturday’s Belmont Stakes. It’s being viewed as a normal weather interruption, which occur at tracks all the time.

There were concerns about smoke at the 2019 Breeders’ Cup at Santa Anita given the track’s proximity to the Getty and Tick fires, but the wind worked in the track’s favor and there were no issues. In 2020, the fall meeting was pushed back a week because of the Bobcat fire.