Kentucky Horsemen Block Some Wagering At Oklahoma Casinos

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) -- A horseman's group in Kentucky is blocking wagering on the spring thoroughbred racing meet at Churchill Downs from some American Indian-owned casinos in Oklahoma.<br/><br/>The

Thursday, April 26th 2007, 6:27 pm

By: News On 6

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) -- A horseman's group in Kentucky is blocking wagering on the spring thoroughbred racing meet at Churchill Downs from some American Indian-owned casinos in Oklahoma.

The action by the Kentucky Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association means that Kentucky Derby bets cannot be made at the casinos. The race is scheduled for May 5.

Marty Maline, the KHBPA's executive director, told the Louisville Courier-Journal that the organization took the action because Oklahoma horsemen are not being compensated for bets made at the tribal casinos, which compete with Oklahoma's four
racetracks -- Remington Park in Oklahoma City, Blue Ribbon Downs in Sallisaw, Fair Meadows in Tulsa and Will Rogers Downs in Claremore.

A federal simulcasting law allows the KHBPA to prevent a signal from a Kentucky racetrack to be provided to an out-of-state location.

Maline said that the Oklahoma tribal casinos used to compensate Sooner State horsemen, and "all we're saying is do it like you used to," he told the Louisville newspaper.

Neither Maline nor his counterpart with the Oklahoma HBPA, Ron Kennedy, returned phone messages left Thursday by The Associated Press.