After 130 years, Aqueduct readies its final furlongs

The New York Racing Association will bid farewell to Aqueduct with a closing weekend celebration on Saturday and Sunday, June 27 and 28, ending more than 130 years of racing at the Big A.

After Aqueduct's closure, NYRA will consolidate all downstate racing and training activities at Belmont Park, which will reopen Sept. 18. Belmont will welcome back the Belmont Stakes in 2027 and host that year's Breeders' Cup World Championships, marking the first edition of the Breeders' Cup in New York State since 2005.

Aqueduct, affectionately known as the Big A, opened Sept. 27, 1894, on property that belonged to the old Brooklyn Water Works, which housed a conduit that brought water to New York City from the Hempstead Plain.

Through the years, the Big A has hosted some of racing's landmark events, including Secretariat's debut on July 4, 1972. Hall of Famers Man o' War, Sword Dancer, Kelso, Buckpasser, Dr. Fager, Secretariat, Forego, Easy Goer and Smarty Jones built their legends at Aqueduct, and Cigar, namesake of the Cigar Mile (G1), won the first two races of his 16-race winning streak at the Big A.

One of the track's signature events came without a horse in sight. On Oct. 6, 1995, Pope John Paul II said mass before 75,000 fans, speaking from a 300-foot-wide papal platform in Aqueduct's infield. Though rain and wind had marred the first two days of the papal visit to New York, sunshine broke through as the pope began to speak. The crowd remains Aqueduct's biggest ever.

Aqueduct has lived multiple lives beyond racing, often opening its doors to serve the local community. After Superstorm Sandy in 2012, NYRA donated use of the Aqueduct parking lot to the American Red Cross to operate a mobile feeding kitchen and relief supplies staging area.

In 2021, NYRA partnered with New York State to transform a large portion of the facility into a COVID-19 vaccination center. The site played a central role in the state-led effort to vaccinate New Yorkers. The size and scope of the center, which occupied the entirety of Aqueduct's first floor, required closing the facility to the public for nearly 10 months. The site administered more than 300,000 vaccinations on Aqueduct's first floor.

From 1955 to 1959, Aqueduct underwent a full rebuild with a new grandstand, racing strip, barns and accessory buildings. The new Aqueduct opened Sept. 14, 1959, before a crowd of 42,473 and earned reviews as the most up-to-date racing facility in North America. From 1963 to 1967, during the prior reconstruction of Belmont Park, Aqueduct hosted the Belmont Stakes.

Aqueduct recently has served as the downstate home of NYRA racing during the transformation of Belmont Park into a new racing and entertainment destination. After the project nears completion, NYRA will return the Aqueduct site previously used for racing to New York State.

NYRA invites fans to celebrate closing weekend at Aqueduct with an array of festivities. All weekend long, fans can view an onsite installation presented by Henry Kornaros of Public Opinion, featuring Aqueduct photographs. NYRA official track photographer Adam Coglianese will host a pop-up booth offering a collection of free photographs as souvenirs.

On Saturday, June 27, a Caribbean-themed party will include live music and a free rum tasting hosted by Mount Gay.

Closing day on Sunday, June 28, will offer fans a final photo opportunity at the Big A. The first 1,000 fans through the door will receive a souvenir mini Mason jar of dirt from the Big A main track. Sunday also will feature live entertainment throughout the day.

General admission for June 27 and 28, which includes a commemorative racing program, will cost $5 with proceeds going to the NYRA Foundation, a philanthropic effort designed to raise funding and awareness for the work of nonprofits, service providers, Thoroughbred aftercare groups and charitable organizations connected to horse racing. Children under 18 receive free admission.

Live racing will cease at the Big A after the June 28 program, but Aqueduct will remain open for simulcasting through Labor Day, Sept. 7.

Centered around a new five-story grandstand featuring a variety of fan amenities and hospitality offerings, Belmont Park will reopen Friday, Sept. 18.