Larry Collmus

Marshall Cassidy, the announcer at the New York tracks from 1979 through 1990, passed away Sunday at his home in Saratoga Springs, NY. He was 75. According to friends of Cassidy, he died in his sleep. The cause of death was not immediately known. Cassidy began his announcing career as the backup caller to Dave Johnson and then Chic Anderson. After Anderson passed away in 1979, Cassidy was promoted to the job of head announcer. In 1990, after the Saratoga meet concluded, he was replaced by Tom Durkin. Over his...

Luis Grandison, a Black Latino who is a native of Panama and who served as the New York Racing Association's Spanish language race caller from 2014 through March 2020, has sued NYRA claiming he was discriminated against because he was paid less than white Americans who call the races in English. According to a suit filed Tuesday in Brooklyn Federal Court, Grandison was paid $60,000 a year. The suit claims that long-time NYRA announcer Tom Durkin earned $440,000 a year before retiring in 2014 and that his replacement, Larry Collmus,...

Larry Collmus, the voice of the Triple Crown and the Breeders' Cup on NBC, will become the announcer at Del Mar this summer when he steps in on a "pinch hitting" assignment for the track's regular caller, Trevor Denman. Stemming from health concerns surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic, Denman, who has been Del Mar's announcer for 36 years, recently informed Del Mar officials that he and his wife, Robin, would remain at their Minnesota farm this summer. "When Trevor told us of his situation, we naturally had to respect what he...

Larry Collmus, the voice of NBC's Triple Crown and Breeders' Cup broadcasts, will join Michael Wrona in the announcer's booth for Kentucky Downs's six-day live race meet, the track announced Tuesday. "I'm excited about calling the races at Kentucky Downs and looking forward to getting back in action," said Collmus, who was the New York Racing Association announcer from 2015 through last fall after spending a year calling the races at Churchill Downs. "The purses at Kentucky Downs are second to none and the unique layout is a fun challenge....

John Imbriale, who has been with the New York Racing Association for better than 40 years, has been appointed the full-time racecaller and track announcer, taking over the position held by Larry Collmus since 2014. Imbriale joins a long list of legendary racecallers in New York, including Tom Durkin, Marshall Cassidy, Chic Anderson, Dave Johnson and Fred Capossela. "John Imbriale is a central part of the fabric of thoroughbred racing in New York," said NYRA CEO & President Dave O'Rourke. "Johnny I's high level of professionalism and flawless delivery are...