Belmont Park | Sarah Andrews
New York Racing Association, Inc. (NYRA) announced that, due to the construction of vehicular and pedestrian tunnels designed to provide access to the Belmont Park courtyard, the 2022 Belmont Park fall meeting will held at the Aqueduct Raceway.
The 28-day Belmont meeting at the Fall Big A will begin on Thursday, September 15 and run through Sunday, October 30. Titles are four Class I races and four “Win and You” qualifiers. are in” for the Breeders’ Cup in November in Keeneland, Belmont at Big A will feature 23 events classified out of 41 stakes worth $9.9 million in total wallets. The live race will be conducted from Thursday-Sunday.
The construction of vehicular and pedestrian access tunnels is a major capital improvement project that will unlock the 45-acre site in Belmont Park. In addition to providing accessibility for fans and the surrounding community, the tunnels will serve as a conduit to the courtyard for commercial vehicles allowing the NYRA to completely recreate the Belmont main track and two its turf. The tunnels will also provide the NYRA with an opportunity to consider installing a composite track in the future.
“This investment in the future of Belmont Park will transform our racing practice and pave the way for a broader re-imagining of what it is,” said Dave O’Rourke, NYRA President & CEO. this base. “Moving to the Aqueduct this fall will minimize the overall impact on the race schedule and ensure continuity for the spring/summer meeting in Belmont and Belmont Stakes presented by the NYRA Bets. We appreciate the patience of our riders and fans as we enter this transition period in Belmont, and look forward to an exciting fall at Big A.
Construction of the tunnels will require the closure of Belmont Park’s main track and field at the end of training on Sunday, August 7. NYRA scheduled training on the main track and field will resume April 2023. Construction of the track will begin after the conclusion of the 2023 Belmont Park spring/summer meeting, which will be held in its entirety in Belmont.
After a three-week closure for annual track maintenance, the Belmont Park training track will reopen on Monday, August 8 and will remain open throughout the tunnel and track construction.
As part of the same round of capital improvement projects, the NYRA will install a synthetic surface on the ¼-mile Belmont Park Racecourse. Slated for completion in September, the Tapeta Footings track will provide a new all-weather training option and provide information and data on the performance of the synthetic surface in all weather conditions in Belmont. .
The Oklahoma Training track will operate as normal, with a training schedule on grass throughout the fall.
The New York Thoroughbred Riders Association (NYTHA) is responsible for promoting and protecting the interests of thoroughbred owners and trainers at Aqueduct Racecourse, Belmont Park, and Saratoga Racecourse. In his role as NYTHA President, Joe Appelbaum expressed support for the renovation and upgrade plans for Belmont.
“NYTHA members recognize the importance of modernizing Belmont Park and look forward to competing at a world-class thoroughbred race venue,” says Appelbaum. “We will continue to work closely with the NYRA to reduce the burden on riders due to the temporary closure of the main track at Belmont.”
This story will be updated.
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This story was posted in Top News and tagged Water troughs, Belmont, Big A, capital improvement project, construction, Dave O’Rourke, NYRA, NYTHA, synthetic surface, tunnel.
