Belmont Park Resumes Live Racing After Air Quality Improves Ahead of Belmont Stakes

The sun is obscured by haze caused by northern wildfires as horses are bathed ahead of the Belmont Stakes horse race in Elmont, N.Y., on June 8, 2023. (John Minchillo/AP Photo)

NEW YORK—Live racing resumed at Belmont Park on Friday following significant improvement in air quality conditions in New York state.

Both Belmont and Saratoga reopened for training Friday morning, and the 11-card race started at 12:50 p.m. The New York Racing Association (NYRA) said in a statement that it will actively monitor air quality conditions and forecasts to ensure the environment remains safe for racing participants and fans ahead of the Belmont Stakes on Saturday.

Racing at Belmont Park was canceled on Thursday due to poor air quality from wildfires in Canada. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul had warned that the Belmont Stakes, the final leg of the Triple Crown, could be affected if conditions don’t improve by Saturday.

New York Racing Association vice president of communications Patrick McKenna said in a statement to The Associated Press on Thursday that state officials and the NYRA consulted on how to proceed going forward in “our shared efforts to provide the safest possible environment for training and racing thoroughbred horses.”