Monmouth Park receives accreditation

OCEANPORT — The National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA) announced that Monmouth Park in Oceanport has been fully accredited by the NTRA Safety and Integrity Alliance following a complete review of all racing operations at the facility.

The accreditation of Monmouth Park was the culmination of a lengthy certification process that began with the track's completion of a 48-page written application and continued as Monmouth Park hosted several meetings with Alliance officials, according to a press release from the racetrack.

The on-site review included inspections of all facets of the racing facility, and interviews with track executives, racetrack personnel, jockeys, owners, trainers, stewards, regulators and fans. The inspection team was comprised of Ronald Jensen, DVM; racing official Richard Lewis; and Mike Ziegler, executive director of the NTRA Safety and Integrity Alliance.

"Monmouth Park was reviewed on July 9-10 during its current meeting," said Ziegler in the press release. "The inspection went very well, with Monmouth surpassing recommended Alliance benchmarks in several areas and maintaining best practices in pre-race veterinary inspections and the compilation and maintenance of jockey health information."

"We're proud to have passed the NTRA's accreditation process," said Bob Kulina, vice president and general manager of Monmouth Park. "In our long history, we have always followed best practices for racing safety and integrity for all human and equine athletes, and today's accreditation is a testament to those practices."

Monmouth Park is the sixth racing facility to be so designated by the Alliance. Churchill Downs and Keeneland were accredited in April; Belmont Park received accreditation in May; and Delaware Park and Hollywood Park were accredited earlier this month. Pimlico Race Course was granted provisional accreditation in May.

The Alliance, formed last October with the goal of establishing national uniform standards in the areas of safety and integrity, includes 55 racetracks in North America and every major national horseman's organization.

Alliance certification standards cover five broad areas: injury reporting and prevention; creating a safer racing environment; aftercare and transition of retired racehorses; uniform medication, testing and penalties; and safety research. Within those five categories, specific standards focus on areas including:

• Systematic reporting of equine injuries

• Aftercare of racehorses

• Pre- and post-race veterinary examinations

• Post-mortem examinations

• Health and safety of jockeys

• Riding crops and their use • Horseshoes and hoof care

• Safety research

• Safety equipment for jockeys and horse handlers

• Exogenous anabolic steroids

• Alkalinizing agents (TCO2)

• On-track emergency medical care for humans and equines

• Out-of-competition testing

• Freezing and retrospective testing of post race samples

• Continuing education

• Security assessment and training

The accreditation program initially will focus on human and equine safety, but will be expanded to cover additional areas, including wagering security.

Arlington Park, Calder Race Course, Del Mar and Saratoga Race Course are among the next racetracks that will undergo Alliance review.

The NTRA Safety and Integrity Alliance is a standing organization whose purpose is to establish standards and practices to promote safety and integrity in horseracing and to secure their implementation. Information on the Alliance, including the Alliance Code of Standards, can be found at www.NTRAalliance.com.

The Honorable Tommy G. Thompson, former four-term governor of Wisconsin and U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services, serves as independent counsel of the alliance and will provide public reports on alliance progress in instituting safety and integrity standards.