Lexington

The Irish diaspora in the Bluegrass has lost one of its foundation stones with the death last Sunday of Roger ("Roddy") O'Byrne, who presided for many years at McCarthy's Bar in downtown Lexington. O'Byrne, together with co-proprietor Peter Kiely, made their bar an institution not just for local horsemen but for the international bloodstock community. During an era when phoney "themed" bars round the world sought to exploit the national tradition of good craic, O'Byrne created a little piece of home for those compatriots of his own generation who served...

Edited Press Release Applications for The Jockey Club's paid internship program for college students and recent college graduates as well as its five academic scholarships opened Monday, the organization said in a release. The eight-week internship program will accommodate up to three interns and is now available in the summer or fall based on the intern's preference. Interns will gain exposure to all companies and departments within the organization, and they will have the opportunity to spend additional time in areas that they find to be of particular interest. The...

After dipping a toe into the pool with their very first consignment at the Fasig-Tipton Midlantic Fall Yearlings Sale in September, Wasabi Ventures Sales dove right into the deep end with a seven-strong group of horses to sell at Keeneland November during Monday's seventh session. The newest branch of the Wasabi family, the consignment is an offshoot of Wasabi Ventures Stables, created by TK and Michele Pesula Kuegler in 2017. Previously based in the Mid-Atlantic, the pair purchased a farm, now named Serendipity Springs, in Lexington, KY in 2024. "We...

The fourth annual Horse Racing Women's Association (HRWA) Conference, presented by Del Mar and FanDuel TV, made its debut in Lexington, Kentucky this year. Held Oct. 8-9 at Limestone Hall, the expansive event, consisting of panel discussions and networking activities, hosted nearly 200 women representing a variety of careers and experience levels throughout the Thoroughbred racing industry. Following Wednesday's welcome reception, attendees gathered Thursday in downtown Lexington as the day's program kicked off with featured speaker Lindsay Czarniak, an accomplished media personality with more than two decades of experience in...

Celebrating 10 Years of Connecting People to the Horse Horse Country, Inc. will celebrate its 10th anniversary in October 2025. Our first tours across Horse Country were offered during the inaugural Breeders' Cup at Keeneland, which also saw the first-ever Grand Slam winner, American Pharoah. You may call that timing good luck, but in truth Horse Country's launch is the perfect example of what happens when preparation meets opportunity. Horse Country's story began with a call to action. In 2011, The Jockey Club's McKinsey Report revealed some concerning findings about...

The fourth annual HRWA Conference, held this year in Lexington, KY, Wednesday October 8 and Thursday October 9, will feature a welcome reception, keynote address by Molly Fletcher, featured afternoon speaker, three panel discussions, and a special presentation of the Jane Goldstein Award. FanDuel TV's Andie Biancone, a racing reporter and analyst, will serve as the emcee for the event. Hailed as one of the first female sports agents, Fletcher negotiated over $500 million in contracts and represented over 300 of sports' biggest names in her almost two-decade career. A...

What drives someone to leave everything behind to follow a dream? And what happens when the dream is within reach, but one last obstacle stands in the way? Tomislav Mitrovski was watching from home when Color Comin' In (Rock Your World), the first horse he ever bred, overcame a troubled start and stormed home to a three-length victory in her debut at Churchill Downs. Over the moon with the result, Mitrovski immediately called his wife to celebrate a win that felt like the start of something bigger. When Mitrovski packed...

Lexington, KY--The final day of the Organization of Racing Investigators (ORI) Training Conference at Keeneland escalated the focus on enforcement and how investigators can broaden their expertise. Though participants regularly receive training at home, the ORI sessions offer equine knowledge that is highly specialized which can be taken back to their own jurisdictions and applied. Mike Singletary, vice president of security for the Maryland Jockey Club, said when his team walks the shedrow at Pimlico or Laurel being cognizant of your surroundings takes time and effort to hone. "Information is...

Edited Press Release Keeneland Library is now presenting the exhibit Of Turf and Stone: Keeneland Through the Ages to celebrate the 90th anniversary of the founding of the Keeneland Association, which established the race track and became a leader in the Thoroughbred industry. Showcasing photographs and memorabilia tracing the development of Keeneland's grounds, architecture, facilities and innovative industry firsts, the exhibit features photographs curated from Keeneland Library collections and Turf photographers who document today's race meets and events to highlight Keeneland's evolution from 1935 to today. "Racing has had a...

Todd Claunch, the farm manager at William Farish's Lane's End Farm, will retire at the end of this month following a 34-year career, the nursery said in a release Dec. 23. He is to be succeeded by Peter Sheehen, a 16-year veteran at Lane's End and its current stallion manager. Claunch joined the yearling division at Lane's End in 1990 and had the distinction of working with champion and Horse of the Year A.P. Indy as a yearling. He was named yearling manager in 1994, managing all aspects of horse...

Kim Wickens has been named the winner of the 2023 Dr. Tony Ryan Book Award for excellence in Thoroughbred racing literature for her biography of the great 19th century stallion, Lexington. The book, Lexington: The Extraordinary Life and Turbulent Times of America's Legendary Racehorse, creates a vivid time capsule back to the pre- and -post Civil War era. This was the second straight year a book about the peerless sire was honored, following Geraldine Brooks's 2022 win for her novel, Horse. Lexington is the first book authored by Wickens, a...

Applications for The Jockey Club's paid internship program for college students and recent college graduates and its five academic scholarships opened Monday. The eight-week internship program in Lexington, KY will accommodate up to three interns and is now available in the summer or fall based on the intern's preference. Interns will gain exposure to all companies and departments within the organization, and they will have the opportunity to spend additional time in areas that they find to be of particular interest. The Jockey Club scholarships will apply to the 2025-2026...