The meet, which concluded yesterday following 53 racing days, including the Kentucky Derby, saw wagering dip by seven percent and attendance fall by 11.5 percent.
The meet was the only one likely to be affected by $121m renovation of the track.
However, total wagering on Kentucky Derby Day established new North American records for betting on a single event and an entire day of racing. Wagering on the Derby itself soared by 13 percent to nearly $88m, and betting on the 12-race Derby Day card rose by two percent to nearly $143m.
The Derby attracted 140,054 despite concerns about weather and construction.
Said Steve Sexton, president of Churchill Downs: "The results of the meet reflect a mixture of short and long-term challenges facing our track. The short-term issues that affected the meet most were patron concerns over the impact of our renovation on their race-day experience and our unusually wet spring, which had a direct impact on the quality of the racing product that we offered to our on-track and simulcast patrons. But the declines reported in this meet also reflect the continuing impact of new competition in our market and our industry. Casino competition has been present in our home market since late 1998, and those competitors continue to grow and mature.
“There's also new competition from a new off-track betting centre located just across the Ohio River in Southern Indiana. And we continue to feel increasing pressure in the competition for horses from tracks located in states where revenues from slot machines have allowed purses to grow and attract horses from Churchill Downs and the entire Kentucky racing circuit.”
Renovation work at Churchill Downs is due for completion in April 2005.
