Betfair Hollywood Park to close after 75 years

[May 10, 2013]  LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Betfair Hollywood Park will close by year's end and the 75-year-old racetrack property in Inglewood will be developed by its owner.

The track announced on Thursday what had been anticipated since Churchill Downs sold it to Hollywood Park Land Co. in 2005.

Track President Jack Liebau says the land in the Los Angeles suburb now is worth more, and racing will end when the autumn meet concludes on Dec. 22. The current summer meet runs through July 14. The stable area is expected to close by the end of the year.

The track opened in 1938 under the direction of movie moguls Jack and Harry Warner. Among the star horses that ran at Hollywood Park were Seabiscuit, and Triple Crown winners Citation, Seattle Slew and Affirmed.

[Associated Press; By BETH HARRIS]

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