LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- The 2020 Kentucky Derby on Sept. 5 will be run before a reduced crowd of "less than 23,000" fans, all of whom will have reserved seats, Churchill Downs said Wednesday.
The Derby "health and safety operations plan" released Wednesday means no fans will be allowed in the track’s 27-acre infield or other non-ticketed areas. The rules also apply to the Kentucky Oaks on Sept. 4.
Since postponing the Derby from its originally scheduled May 2 running, Churchill Downs executives have said they intend to run the race with some spectators present, though they never gave a specific figure.
Gov. Andy Beshear in June approved a conceptual plan that mentioned percentage-based decreases in different areas of the Louisville track but gave no overall attendance limit or estimate.
The restrictions announced Wednesday reduce Derby attendance to no more than 14% of the record crowd of 170,513 in 2015, Churchill Downs said. No more than 40% of reserved seats occupied, the company said.
"Most years, we take it for granted that the Kentucky Derby is both a celebration and an inspiration for the people of the Commonwealth of Kentucky and beyond. With all the challenges facing our Nation, the atmosphere at this year’s Kentucky Derby will not be the celebration that it normally is," Churchill Downs CEO Bill Carstanjen said in an op-ed dated Wednesday. "However, we hope that this time-honored event will serve as a unifying force. Beyond the parties and the fun, the Kentucky Derby has always given us that additional gift. We are optimistic that it will again this year unite us, inspire us and remind us of the many things we all have in common."
Other aspects of the safety plan include:
- Mandatory facial coverings, with Churchill Downs saying it will enforce the expectation that masks be worn except when "actively eating or drinking"
- Guest and staff will be temperature-screened and have to fill out a medical questionnaire upon entry. Fans will be provided a face mask, a bottle of hand sanitizer and a "personal stylus pen" to use at betting terminals.
- "Pre-set served meals" will replace self-service food. Beverages will be served with wrapped straws and bartenders will not open cans upon serving them.
- Hundreds of floor decals and signs will be used to ensure spacing between fans and provide reminders about social distancing and mask usage.
- Fans will be restricted to the section in which they are seated.
- The Kentucky Oaks-day parade of breast-cancer survivors will replaced with a "video tribute."
- There will be no "red carpet" entrance for celebrities.
Backtracking on infield fans
Churchill Downs had said as late as July 30 that it planned to have general admission fans, with Carstanjen saying the company had sold "a bunch" of non-seated tickets. Those tickets will be refunded, the company said Wednesday.
Carstanjen told shareholders two weeks ago that the track had put infield ticket sales on hold after a recent spike in COVID-19 cases in Kentucky and around the nation.
Churchill Downs seemed on the cusp of finally detailing its Derby protocols last week, but the roll-out was delayed when the Indianapolis 500 announced it would go off without fans at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Aug. 23.
The final Derby plan was produced in consultation with Gov. Andy Beshear's office and state and local health officials, Churchill Downs said.
“We are both carefully watching the numbers,” Beshear said Aug. 4, referencing a conversation with Carstanjen earlier that day. “He assured me that he wants Churchill and the Derby to be safe. We’re going to talk next week after we see the trends going on this week, but their commitment is to do what it takes to make it safe.”
Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer said Wednesday that Churchill Downs' "downsizing" of the Derby is "the responsible thing to do."
Churchill Downs announced a plan to run the Derby with an unspecified number of fans on June 25. At the time, the coronavirus in Kentucky appeared to be on the decline.
But Kentucky’s caseload began rising in early July. On Tuesday, the state recorded 562 new cases, a figure officials said was “artificially low” due to lab reporting issues.
Beshear last month closed bars and reduced restaurants to 25% indoor capacity for two weeks, before allowing both to operate at 50% capacity starting Tuesday.
The state's seven-day average positivity rate of 5.87% has also risen in the last month, with officials saying that a rate over 5% is concerning.
This marks the second time in the Derby's 145-year history that it has been delayed from the traditional first Saturday in May. The first time was during World War II, when the race took place in June following Germany's surrender to the Allied Forces.
