European Horses Arrive at JFK Today for Yonkers International Trot

Six world-class trotters from Europe touched down this morning (October 5) at John F. Kennedy Airport in New York‎ to compete in the 38th edition of the $1 million Yonkers International Trot, set for Saturday afternoon, October 15, at Yonkers Raceway.
The arriving-group represents five of the seven countries that will vie for the purse equaling last year’s New York State and raceway record. Elite trotters from Denmark, Finland, Italy, Norway, and Sweden (2) were on board, and will be joined by the United States (3) and Canada in the global trotting classic which was revived last year after a 20-year hiatus by raceway and Empire City Casino president and CEO Timothy J. Rooney.
The sextet of Euros that made the transcontinental journey, plus three United States flag-carriers and one Canadian stalwart, in alphabetical order, are as follows:
BBS Sugarlight – Norway
Explosive de Vie – Sweden
Flanagan Memory – Canada
Hannelore Hanover – USA (mare)
Jonesy -- Finland
Oasis Bi - Italy
Obrigado - USA
On Track Piraten – Sweden
Resolve – USA‎
Tano Bork – Denmark
The European invaders departed from Liège Airport in eastern Belgium (close to the German city of Düsseldorf), and landed at 7:00 AM following the transcontinental flight of 5,960‎ kilometers or 3,703.4 miles. The journey traveled was eight hours and 55 minutes.
Three of the entrants – BBS Sugarlight (4th), Oasis Bi (5th) and On Track Piraten (7th) - competed in last year’s Yonkers International. Last season’s winner, Norway’s Papagayo E., is injured and unable to defend his title.Italy’s Ringostarr Treb had accepted an invitation to participate this year but was scratched and did not make the trip.
The USA will have a triple threat in a trio of million dollar earners. The only mare in the field, ‎Hannelore Hanover (driver Yannick Gingras), was a $32,000 bargain purchase who has won 23 of 37 career races. Resolve ‎(driver Ake Svanstedt), who has 14 career victories and was able to defeat Hannelore in the final of the Maple Leaf Trot on September 17, is the second American entry. Obrigado today became the third American to accept an invitation, replacing the scratched Ringostarr Treb. This 6-year-old Boy Band gelding has been the best thing to come out of Maine since bottled water, sporting career earnings of $1,362,019. Obrigado has won six of his 14 seasonal starts ($614,320), and comes off a win in the $160,000 Dayton Trotting Derby this past Friday (1:53.2). ‎
Yonkers Raceway's Frank Drucker and Cammie Haughton comprised the greeting party to welcome the visiting contingent. The elite trotting sextet ‎was vanned to Newburgh's airport for a two-day quarantine, and will then be shipped to Yonkers on Friday.
The horses actually still have not touched U.S. soil due to the quarantine. They were lowered on pallets and carefully loaded onto the vans which were then sealed for the trip to Newburgh’s Stewart Airport for a two-day quarantine before being shipped to Yonkers on Friday.