O'Brien Awards Weekend Begins In London

Written By Shannon Doyle

Harborlite Ambrose (Austin Sorrie) won the Standardbred Canada Feature (Jeff Porchak/Standardbred Canada)

It seems only fitting that London, Ont. would celebrate its 200th birthday with a party the likes of which it's never seen before.

Exactly 200 years ago today — Jan. 30, 1826 — London, Ont. became a legal entity, founded at the Forks of the Thames River. Now, for the first time, the Forest City gets ready to host Canadian harness racing's most prestigious event with the kickoff to O'Brien Awards weekend.

"There's a really good crowd here tonight, the atmosphere is electric and the handle is great," added Mark Horner, Chair of the Board of Standardbred Canada. "The races have been good and we're having a good time. It's great to have a lot of the nominees here, and it's going to be a great weekend for everybody. Greg Blanchard has done a great job here with this night, and I'm sure Western Fair will put on a good show tomorrow night."

Wagering on Friday's 10-race card at The Raceway was a meet high handle of $829,785, following a weather cancellation last week and nearly double its previous Friday card on Jan. 16.

"Obviously, the cold snap took its toll on some tracks, and with no Meadowlands tonight, a big impact on handle for sure, but to see the crowd on track is really exciting," said Greg Blanchard, Director of Equine Programming at The Raceway at Western Fair District. "There's a real buzz here this evening. It feels like the crowds we get during the holiday season -- a full house here, everybody having a great time, folks that are in from all over Canada for the O'Briens. Our whole team here, right from our Board of Directors on down, are tremendously excited for tomorrow, especially being the first time at Western Fair ever, but tonight here was a great way to kick it off."

Following a night of camaraderie and racing action, O'Brien finalists and guests will gather at the J-AAR Expo Centre for the 37th edition of the awards named in honour of Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Famer Joe O’Brien.

Griff MacDonald joined Sugar Doyle on the mic and was one of many visitors to the judges stand and announcer booth on Friday Night (Jenna MacDonell)

Shannon Doyle
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