Riot on New York Racecourse

Grey River Argus, 4 June 1948, Page 3

Riot on New York Racecourse

NEW YORK, June 1. Ten people were taken to hospital and about a hundred more treated for cuts and bruises after a riot at the Belmont racecourse, New York. The riot began after Vulcan’s Forge, an outsider, had defeated Coaltown, who was at long odds-on, in the 25,000-dollar Withers Mile. A negro, who had backed the favourite drew a knife from his pocket and menaced people standing around him. The people fell back and started to panic, which spready rapidly to the rest of the crowd of 40,000. Men, women and children were trampled and their clothing was torn. A “riot call” was sent to police headquarters and hundreds of extra police went, to the racecourse. The police could not restore order for two hours.

Coaltown’s defeat was the biggest Turf upset of the year. His only previous defeat was by Citation in this year’s Kentucky Derby. After his failure in a minor race last week, for which he started favourite, the former Australian horse, Shannon, to-day won the 50,000-dollar Argonaut Handicap over eight furlongs and a half at Hollywood Park racecourse.

Shannon, carrying 8.0, defeated Mafosta, 8.10, and his stablemate, On Trust, 9.0. He won by a length and a quarter and the some distance separated the second and third horses-. The time was lmin 42 3-4 sec. A record crowd of 71,000 watched the race;