News Releases

Friday, July 20, 2012Contact: Bob Curran Jr. (212) 521-5326
USADA CEO Travis T. Tygart to Deliver Keynote Address at Round Table Conference

Travis T. Tygart, chief executive officer of the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA), will share insights on the mission, policies and practices employed by the USADA and the Partnership for Clean Competition to combat the use of performance-enhancing drugs when he delivers the keynote address at The Jockey Club’s 60th Annual Round Table Conference on Matters Pertaining to Racing on Sunday, August 12, at the Gideon Putnam Resort in Saratoga Springs, N.Y.

The Jockey Club will once again provide a live video stream of the entire Round Table Conference. The two-hour conference begins at 10 a.m. EDT and can be viewed at jockeyclub.com. A replay of the live video stream will be available within one hour of the conclusion of the conference and an official transcript of the proceedings will be available on The Jockey Club website the following day.

“With medication and drugs dominating the headlines in the Thoroughbred industry in the past year, it will be enlightening to see and hear how others sports organizations are dealing with the issue of performance-enhancing drugs,” said Ogden Mills Phipps, chairman of The Jockey Club.

Formed in 2000, USADA is recognized by the U.S. Congress as the official anti-doping agency for Olympic, Pan American and Paralympic sport in the United States.

USADA’s anti-doping programs include in-competition and out-of-competition testing, results management and adjudication processes, drug reference resources and therapeutic use exemption processes, scientific research initiatives, and athlete and outreach education.

Since becoming chief executive officer of USADA in September of 2007, Tygart has served as an advocate for the integrity of sport and clean athletes, testifying in front of Congress on the use of performance-enhancing drugs in sport, regulation of the supplement industry, and the ratification of the UNESCO international treaty against doping in sport.

Under his leadership, USADA’s efforts to protect clean athletes have included cooperating with federal authorities on numerous investigations, including the international steroid bust, Operation Raw Deal and the international doping conspiracy involving the BALCO laboratory in San Francisco. Tygart’s tenure as CEO also produced the groundbreaking research, “What Sport Means in America.”

He also serves on the board of governors of the Partnership for Clean Competition (PCC), which ensures integrity in sport by supporting anti-doping research.

America’s leading sports entities have collaborated to form the PCC. Founding organizations of the PCC include the U.S. Olympic Committee, the National Football League, Major League Baseball, and the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency. Additional supporters include the National Basketball Association, National Hockey League and the PGA TOUR.

The Round Table Conference program will also include a report on the activities of The Jockey Club and its affiliated companies from James L. Gagliano, president and chief operating officer of The Jockey Club.

Jason Wilson, The Jockey Club’s vice president of business development, will present an overview of the various marketing and fan development initiatives The Jockey Club is spearheading in the wake of the comprehensive economic study of the sport that was presented at the 2011 Round Table Conference by representatives of McKinsey & Company.

Included in that segment will be updates and comments from Dan Singer, a director in McKinsey & Company’s Media & Entertainment Practice.

Stuart S. Janney III, vice chairman of The Jockey Club and chairman of the Thoroughbred Safety Committee, will deliver a report on “Clean and Safe Horse Racing,” along with Matt Iuliano, executive vice president and executive director of The Jockey Club

The Jockey Club Round Table Conference was first held on July 1, 1953, in The Jockey Club office in New York City. The following year, it was moved to Saratoga Springs, N.Y., where it has been held every August since.