According to Tonya Abeln, CDI’s vice president of communications, owner/trainer Burton Sipp, who has been criticized by the animal-care and animal-care groups Purely for rights concerns of horses, has been banned by racetrack operator Churchill Downs Inc. indefinitely suspended.
The suspension, effective August 15, applies strictly to Churchill Downs Inc. properties, including Presque Isle Downs, where Sipp has been a regular this year. In addition, he often runs horses in Mountaineer Casino Resort & Racetrackhave different ownership.
Abeln said Sipp was notified on Monday, and that his two horses entered the race were scratched.
CDI’s action follows an online petition being circulated calling for his expulsion from racing.
Sipp first competed from 1968-1994, according to Equibase records, before re-exporting in 2004. Charged with insurance fraud in 1983 after a herd of horses died, an accusation that he denied, he ended up committing lesser crimes. fake witness in 1984.
During his racing break, he opened Animal Kingdom, an exotic zoo in Springfield, NJ
He currently trains a herd of lower-ranking claimants, although several governing bodies and regulators have taken steps to limit his involvement over the years.
Abeln said CDI’s decision was made in the interest of safety and integrity over “our concerns about the treatment of his horses.”
“I know a lot of things are still being investigated,” she said. “It will only be reevaluated on an ongoing basis.”
