Keynote speakers from Japan, Ireland scheduled at Jockey
Club Round Table
Masayuki Goto, the executive director of Racing Administration Policies,
Stable System and Breeding of the Japan Racing Association (JRA), and Brian
Kavanagh, chief executive officer of Horse Racing Ireland, will share insights
on policies, initiatives and business operations of their respective
organizations, as well as their perspectives on Thoroughbred racing in North
America, when they deliver keynote presentations at The Jockey Club’s 61st
Annual Round Table Conference on Matters Pertaining to Racing on August 11 at
the Gideon Putnam Resort in Saratoga Springs, New York.
“Thoroughbred racing becomes more of a global sport with each passing day and
international harmonization continues to grow in importance,” said Ogden Mills
Phipps, chairman of The Jockey Club. “Mr. Kavanagh and Mr. Goto have been
extremely active and are widely respected in international circles, and we are
honored to have them participate in the Round Table Conference.”
Goto, who spoke about the progress of racing and wagering in Japan at the
1995 edition of the Round Table Conference, will touch on the structure of
Japanese racing, racing and breeding trends, the marketing and promotion of the
sport, and integrity and safety issues.
Goto joined JRA in 1975, and he has served as chief representative of the
JRA’s New York office, manager of the International Strategic Planning Section,
assistant general manager of the Public Relations Department, and general
manager of the Corporate Strategies Planning Department. He was appointed to the
JRA board in 2006 and was named as the executive director in March 2011.
Kavanagh will provide an overview of Thoroughbred racing in Europe, and in
Ireland in particular, and also talk about perceptions of North American-based
horses as breeding prospects.
In addition to serving as a director for several Irish racecourses, he is the
vice chairman of the International Federation of Horse Racing Authorities and
chairman of the European and Mediterranean Horseracing Federation and the
European Patten Race Committee.
The Round Table Conference agenda will also feature respective reports on the
activities of The Jockey Club and America’s Best Racing by James L. Gagliano,
president and chief operating officer of The Jockey Club, and Jason Wilson, vice
president of business development for The Jockey Club.
Stuart S. Janney III, the vice chairman of The Jockey Club and chairman of
the Thoroughbred Safety Committee, will present an update on the committee’s
work. That segment will also feature a novel approach to analyze the effect of
race-day medication from Dr. Hiram C. Polk Jr., who is a member of the
committee, and a journalist’s perspective on medication issues by award-winning
freelance writer Ryan Goldberg.
The Jockey Club will once again provide a live video stream of the entire
Round Table Conference. The two-hour conference begins at 10 a.m. (EDT) and can
be viewed at jockeyclub.com.
A replay of the live video stream will be available within one hour of the
conclusion of the conference, and an official transcript of the proceedings will
be available on The Jockey Club website the following day.
Bet Horseracing Free Online at TwinSpires.com