Castellano Tests Positive for Coronavirus; Gulfstream Will Race

[Wandering Eyes]

Hall of Fame jockey Javier Castellano has tested positive for the coronavirus, reports his agent, John Panagot. Castellano is the first North American-based jockey known to have come down with the illness.

Castellano had been riding at Gulfstream, but Bill Badgett the executive director of Florida racing operations for the Stronach Group, said that racing will continue at the South Florida racetrack. He said that Castellano has not ridden at Gulfstream since March 15 and was tested on Sunday when he returned to Florida from New York.

“We put protocols in place where no jockey who had been out of own could ride here until they took a physical,” Badgett said. “The physical is where they discovered he had the virus, otherwise he still wouldn’t know that he was positive. The safety of the jockey and everyone else here is our main priority and it’s more important than racing.

“But this has nothing to do with us. He was not on the property around the time he would have gotten sick and hasn’t been in contact with any other jockeys.”

Prior to riding at Gulfstream on the 15th, Castellano rode on the March 14 card at Oaklawn. New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Payton attended the races that day and mingled with some trainers, jockeys and TVG personnel. He has since tested positive for COVID-19.

Panagot released the news about Castellano on twitter and wrote that his jockey is “asymptomatic and feels fine and healthy.”

“He jogged three miles on Wednesday and looked forward to the weekend,” Panagot continued. “He will self-isolate until he is medically cleared.”

Castellano’s mounts Saturday included Candy Tycoon (Twirling Candy) in the GI Florida Derby.

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