2008 World Cup of Amateur Racing slated for USA
Quelle: http://www.ustrotting.com/
2008 World Cup of Amateur Racing slated for USA
Thursday, November 01, 2007 - by John Manzi
Monticello, NY --- The members of the North American Amateur Drivers Association are preparing to host the 2008 World Cup of Amateur Racing, set to get underway in mid-May 2008, which will mark 20 years since the international races have been contested on American soil.
The World Cup features the top amateur drivers from each of the participating countries of which this year there will be 12. The event is considered the world championship of amateur racing.
The World Cup races are run under the auspices of the Federation Europeenne des Gentleman Amateurs et Cavaliers du Trot (F.E.G.A.T.) and all contests will be trotting events.
According to Claes Ljung, the president of F.E.G.A.T, the first World Cup was held in Germany in 1976. However, it was a system where everyones own horses were transported to one country. The first "modern" version was the one in the Netherlands in 1984.
In the 2006 season, the World Cup was raced in Italy and Lon Frocione was the United States representative.
Others who drove for the red, white and blue in previous World Cup competitions included Bob Krivelin, Bud Hatfield, Joe Faraldo, Frank LaVigne, and Alan Schwartz (twice).
Bob Krivelins third place finish in Italy in 2000 is the best World Cup showing by a United States amateur driver.
However, in deference to the American -- and Canadians -- there is a greater opportunity for amateur drivers in Europe, where amateur races are always part of every race program and many amateurs have hundreds, sometimes thousands, of driving victories. This usually puts the North Americans at a disadvantage, since most American and Canadian amateurs rarely drive more than 100 times during a season.
According to NAADA president Joe Faraldo, the participants in World Cup 2008 will convene in Chicago, Ill., on or about May 15, with the first two contests in World Cup 2008 slated in the greater Chicago area.
On May 16 the races will be at Balmoral Park in Crete, Ill., followed the next evening at Maywood Park, in Maywood, Ill., Faraldo related. May 18 will be an off day and on May 19 and 20 the races will be either at Monticello Raceway or Yonkers Raceway, though which dates will be where are still not yet finalized. Then on May 21 the World Cup amateurs will do double duty with races in the afternoon at Freehold Raceway in Freehold N.J., and in the evening at The Meadowlands in East Rutherford, N.J.
Faraldo is now awaiting the names of the participants, which he expects hell be receiving in the near future.