The Maryland Racing Commission is the official governing body that oversees the
horse racing
Horse racing is an equestrian performance activity, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its bas ...
and off-track betting in
Maryland
Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...
. Based in
Towson, Maryland
Towson () is an unincorporated community and a census-designated place in Baltimore County, Maryland, United States. The population was 59,533 in the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Baltimore County and the second-most populous unincorpo ...
, it was formed on 1920. The commission is a division of the
Maryland Department of Labor
The Maryland Department of Labor (called the Department of Labor, Licensing, and Regulation until 2019) is a government agency in the U.S. state of Maryland. It is headquartered at 100 South Charles Street, Tower I in Baltimore.
History
Toda ...
.
The commission operates under Title 11, Business Regulation, Annotated Code of Maryland, Horse Racing. and operated the following sub-committees; Maryland-Bred Race Fund Advisory Committee, Maryland Standardbred Race Fund Advisory Committee and the Maryland Jockey Injury Compensation Fund.
History
In 1967
Kathryn Kusner
Kathryn Hallowell "Kathy" Kusner (born March 21, 1940) is an American equestrian and Olympic medalist in show jumping. She was one of the first women to ride for the United States Equestrian Team (USET), the first licensed female jockey, and the ...
applied for a jockey license through the commission but was denied because she was a woman.
However, in 1968 Judge Ernest A. Loveless of the Circuit Court of Prince Georges County ordered her to be granted the license. Kusner thus became the first licensed female jockey in the United States.
In 1992, the commission introduced off-track betting.
Directors and Members
The current head of the racing commission is Bruce Quade.
The commission is required to have five board members without a financial interest and four members with a financial interest in racing who serve four year terms.
Mike Hopkins (Executive Director 2003–present) Bruce Quade (Director 2011-), Tom Winebrener, John Franzone, David Hayden, Charles Tildon, Ernest Grecco, Mary Louise Preis, Louis Ulman, John McDaniel, Bruce C. Spizler (Senior Assistant Attorney General)
*2001 - Lewis J. Ulman (Director)
*Frank F. Favazza Jr.(-2010)
*
Frank Small, Jr. (Chairman 1951–1952, member 1937–1950)
*
Terry West, appointed 2023
See also
*
Maryland Horse Industry Board
*
Laurel Park
*
Pimlico Race Course
Pimlico Race Course is a thoroughbred horse racetrack in Baltimore, Maryland, most famous for hosting the Preakness Stakes. Its name is derived from the 1660s when English settlers named the area where the facility currently stands in honor of O ...
*
Timonium Race Course
*
Fair Hill Races
*
Rosecroft Raceway
Rosecroft Raceway, nicknamed the "Raceway by the Beltway" for being close to Interstate 495 (Capital Beltway), Interstate 495, is a harness racing track in Fort Washington, Maryland. It first opened in 1949 and was owned by William E. Miller, a ...
*
Ocean Downs
References
External links
Maryland Racing Commission web site
1920 establishments in Maryland
Government agencies established in 1920
Gambling regulators in the United States
Horse racing organizations in the United States
Racing
In sports, racing is a competition of speed, in which competitors try to complete a given task in the shortest amount of time. Typically this involves traversing some distance, but it can be any other task involving speed to reach a specific g ...
Horse racing in Maryland
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