Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corp. Supports Harness Racing Grooms

Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation announced its continued support of the Outstanding Groom Award in partnership with Standardbred Canada. Their collaboration would ring in the fifth consecutive year of support. January 3, 2020 is about to bring the last chance for a nomination ahead of the annual awards ready to praise the local Standardbred horse racing field. O’Brien Awards Black Tie Gala would once again present the awards at the beginning of February 2020.

Ontario’s horse racing field is a diverse one and the province has many ways in which it supports and encourages it to keep developing and excelling. Standardbred horse racing on a provincial level comes with its very own annual awards touting stellar performance and praising individuals with great accomplishments over the past twelve months of horse racing.

Outstanding Groom Award

Receiving recognition for achievements and contributions to the local harness racing is a motivation enough to keep up the good work and strive for an award on the following year as well. For the fifth year in a row, the O’Brien Awards Black Tie Gala is about to attract individuals across the local field for a night of celebration and glamour.

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People interested no the local harness racing field have the opportunity to submit nominations for Outstanding Groom up until January 3, 2020, also known as the deadline day for this award. Ever since 2015, the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation has been among the leading forces behind this special award. It aims to praise local grooms that have put their efforts and time into working with horses and taking care of them in the best way possible.

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The nominees for this award should be of legal age and they should also have worked at least five years in the harness racing industry ahead of the annual awards in February 2020. All grooms nominated for the Outstanding Groom Award should also live and work in Canada, in order to become eligible for the recognition.

O’Brien Awards Black Tie Gala

Once all submissions have been received by January 3, 2020, a committee is going to review them and issue its position on the two finalists most worthy of the special award. January 8 is about to bring the names of those two individuals, in order to reach a wider number of people in the harness racing field.

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February 1, 2020, is about to see the official event at which the winners would bag their awards in this and many more categories. The first edition of the Outstanding Groom Award was given away for the first time on February 13, 2015. This was the 27th edition of the O’Brien Awards, welcoming the new category and praising local groomers’ performance.

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The prime event honors Joe O’Brien, a member of the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame. The first individual to bag the award was Cindy Acton for her outstanding performance in the harness racing field and the good care she took of horses. Last year saw not one, but two winners bagging the Outstanding Groom Award – Scott Lecain and Trevor Forgie.