Ziegler to head NTRA Safety & Integrity Alliance

The National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA) announced Monday that

Mike Ziegler has been named the executive director of the NTRA Safety &

Integrity Alliance.

Ziegler, who will be based in Lexington, Kentucky, will manage multiple

Alliance projects and secure broad-based support of Alliance initiatives in the

areas of equine and human safety, as well as industry integrity. He will report

to NTRA president and CEO Alex Waldrop. Ziegler comes to the Alliance from

Youbet.com, Inc., where he served as a senior vice president. He has previously

held senior management positions with Hollywood Park, Bay Meadows and Santa

Anita Park.

"We are pleased to bring in someone with Mike's experience and passion to

head up the NTRA Safety & Integrity Alliance," Waldrop said. "His role will be

crucial to the future of the Thoroughbred industry as we implement a series of

important national integrity standards."

"The success of the NTRA Safety & Integrity Alliance is essential, and I am

proud to be entrusted with this challenge," Ziegler said. "I look forward to

working with everyone associated with the racing industry as we build support

and strive for vital safety and integrity improvements all across North

America."

"While we are sad to see Mike leave, it's a true honor for Youbet that one of

our own is going to fulfill such an important role in our industry," Youbet.com

CEO Michael Brodsky said. "We wish him every bit of personal and professional

success in his new endeavor."

The NTRA Safety & Integrity Alliance is a standing organization whose

purpose is to implement safety and integrity reforms. The Alliance also will

function as a certification/accreditation body for the purpose of recognizing

and incentivizing compliance by all stakeholders. Reforms will be undertaken

using a phased approach that begins immediately -- in some cases, under a House

Rules format -- and transitions to a broader strategy that relies on licensure

requirements, continuing education programs and the state regulatory process.

The Honorable Tommy G. Thompson, former four-term Governor of Wisconsin and

Secretary of Health and Human Services, serves as independent counsel for the

Alliance.

The NTRA is a broad-based coalition of horse racing interests consisting of

leading Thoroughbred racetracks, owners, breeders, trainers and affiliated horse

racing associations, charged with increasing the popularity of horse racing and

improving economic conditions for industry participants. The NTRA has offices in

Lexington, Kentucky, and in New York. For more information, visit NTRA.com.