News Release _________________________________________________________________________________________________________ FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Contact: Kevin Kerstein Publicity Manager Churchill Downs Racetrack (610) 420-6971 (mobile) (502) 635-4712 (office) [email protected] EARLY NOMINATION DEADLINE FOR 2020 TRIPLE CROWN SERIES SET FOR SATURDAY LOUISVILLE, Ky. (Monday, Jan 20, 2020) – Early nominations for 3-year-old Thoroughbreds to compete in the three-race 2020 Triple Crown series – the $3 million Kentucky Derby presented by Woodford Reserve (Grade I), $1.5 million Preakness Stakes (GI) and $1.5 million Belmont Stakes (GI) – are due Saturday, Jan. 25. Early Triple Crown nominations cost $600 and must be made at the time of entry on www.thetriplecrown.com or by calling the Churchill Downs Racing Office at (502) 638-3825. Information regarding mailing nomination forms can be found on www.thetriplecrown.com. A late nomination period, which requires the payment of $6,000 for each nominated 3-year-old, will open at 12 a.m. Eastern on Sunday, Jan. 26 and continue through Monday, March 30. The 2020 Triple Crown opens Saturday, May 2 with the 146th running of the 1 ¼-mile Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky. The 145th Preakness, its 1 3/16-mile second jewel, is set for Saturday, May 16 at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Md. The 152nd running of the Belmont Stakes, the series’ 1 ½-mile final leg, is scheduled for Saturday, June 6 at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y. Last year’s early phase of Triple Crown nominations attracted 362 horses with four additional horses nominated during the second closing date. Three-year-olds that were not nominated to the Triple Crown during either the early or late nomination phases have a final opportunity to become eligible for the races through payment of a supplemental nomination fee. Due at the time of entry for either the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness or the Belmont Stakes, the supplemental fee process makes a horse eligible for the remainder of the Triple Crown series. A supplemental nomination at the time of entry to the Kentucky Derby requires payment of $200,000. The fee is $150,000 if paid prior to the Preakness or $50,000 at time of entry to the Belmont Stakes. Representatives of the Triple Crown host tracks include:  Churchill Downs: Racing Secretary Ben Huffman at (502) 638-3820 or [email protected]. … Assistant Racing Secretary and Stakes Coordinator Dan Bork at (502) 638-3806 or [email protected]. … Racing Operations Manager Kelly Danner at (502) 638-3825 or [email protected].  Pimlico: Racing Secretary Chris Merz at (800) 638-1859 or [email protected]. … Stakes Coordinator Coleman Blind at (800) 638-1859 or [email protected].  Belmont Park: Vice President of Racing Operations Martin Panza at (718) 659-4241 or [email protected]. … Stakes Coordinator Andrew Byrnes at (718) 659-4217 or [email protected]. -END-