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Churchill reduces overnight, stakes purses Soft business levels stemming from the nation's economic slowdown, and the unresolved negotiations with horsemen over distribution of the Churchill Downs simulcast signal to national advance deposit wagering (ADW) outlets, have prompted Churchill Downs to announce a 10 percent reduction in overnight purses for the remainder of its fall meet and reductions in purses for two of the meet's major stakes races. Overnight purses will be reduced by 10 percent effective with the racing program on November 12. In addition, purses will be reduced for the Clark H. (G2), which is set for November 28, and the Falls City H. (G2), which will be run on the November 27 Thanksgiving Day program. The Clark purse will be reduced by $100,000 to $400,000-added, and the Falls City purse by $50,000 to $150,000-added. The reduction in stakes purses for the fall meet is the second announced by Churchill Downs. A reduction of some stakes purses and the cancellation of two stakes events was announced on August 29. The fall meet runs through November 29. The Churchill Downs simulcast signal has been blocked from national advance deposit wagering outlets since the beginning of Churchill Downs's spring meet on April 26. Those outlets include TwinSpires.com, the official ADW site for Churchill Downs Inc. The Kentucky Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association (HBPA) and Kentucky Thoroughbred Association (KTA) have withheld permission to allow distribution of the track's simulcast signal to those ADW platforms. "The soft economy has led to a decline of wagering dollars industry-wide and resulted in purse reductions at tracks across the country," Churchill Downs Inc. Senior Vice President Kevin Flanery said. "The inability to distribute simulcast signals to national ADW platforms has placed additional pressure on purses at Churchill Downs. We apologize to our customers for this inconvenience and will continue to work to obtain the horsemen's consent to distribute the Churchill Downs simulcast signal to those sites."
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