9/11 ceremony held at Belmont Park

The New York Racing Association held a special ceremony today, prior to the start of Sunday’s live racing card at Belmont Park, to honor those who lost their lives on Sept. 11, 2001.

Around 12:35 p.m., bugler Sam Grossman performed a rendition of “Taps.” He was joined in the winner’s circle by Nassau County Police Department Officer Tom Lesser and NYRA Peace Officer Linda Falacara, who displayed New York State’s new 10th anniversary 9/11 memorial flag, which unveiled by Gov. Andrew Cuomo earlier this week.

According to NYRA, the 9/11 memorial flag will be flown in the Belmont infield for the remainder of the fall meet.

NYRA also held a moment of silence to today, in honor of the victims and heroes of 9/11, followed by Grossman's performance of “The Star-Spangled Banner.”

Belmont Park served as one of the staging areas for emergency vehicles and personnel in the days following 9/11.

The National Thoroughbred Racing Association, Breeders’ Cup and NYRA collaborated to form the NTRA Charities-New York Heroes Fund to benefit the families of the rescue personnel and other victims of 9/11, and dedicated the 2001 World Thoroughbred Championships in their honor. Through pledges of purse earnings by owners, trainers and jockeys, Breeders’ Cup day alone has raised more than $2 million for the fund.

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