The National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA), Daily Racing Form and the National Turf Writers And Broadcasters (NTWAB) have  announced the winners of the 2015 Media Eclipse Awards.

They are:

  • Tim Sullivan, Media Eclipse Award for Writing in the News/Enterprise category, for “Family, PETA at odds after Horseman’s Death,” an investigative report into the circumstances surrounding the suicide of Hub Johnson, an assistant in the Thoroughbred stable of trainer Steve Asmussen, and his interaction with an  informant with a hidden camera representing the People for Ethical Treatment of Animals. The article appeared in the Louisville Courier-Journal on September 6, 2015.
  • Scott Serio, Media Eclipse Award for Photography, for his photograph of Triple Crown winner American Pharoah working out on the Keeneland training track in preparation for last year’s Breeders’ Cup Classic. The photograph appeared in the Cecil (Md.) Guardian on November 4 and the Thoroughbred Daily News on Nov. 5, as well as in other outlets.
  • Jennie Rees, Media Eclipse Award for Writing in the Feature/Commentary category, for “Dyslexia Doesn’t Slow Down Keen Ice Trainer Romans,” a discovery of how Dale Romans overcame a severe reading disability as a child on his way to becoming one of America’s top Thoroughbred trainers. The article was first published on the Louisville Courier-Journal website on October 28, 2015.
  • NBC Sports, Media Eclipse Award for Television – Live Racing Programming, for its broadcast of the 2015 Belmont Stakes featuring American Pharoah’s victory, the first Triple Crown sweep in 37 years. The two-hour live telecast from Belmont Park in New York aired June 6 of last year.
  • Mary Simon of Daily Racing Form, Media Eclipse Award in the Audio/Multi-Media and Internet category, for “Regret’s Derby at 100: Filly Made a Case for Equality,” which explored the impact of the first filly to win the Kentucky Derby during a period of great upheaval in America with impending world war and the struggle of women to earn the right to vote.
  • Digital Kitchen’s production of “Ironman Perry Ouzts,” directed by the Hennegan Brothers, which tells the remarkable story of the 61-year-old journeyman jockey, and aired on AT&T U-Verse Sports on August 15, 2015, has won the Media Eclipse Award for Television – Feature.


For full releases on all the winners, visit the NTRA website.

Tickets to the Eclipse Awards are available for $400 each. Dinner tickets and reservations for the official event hotel – the Diplomat Resort & Spa, Curio Collection by Hilton – can be accessed by contacting Casey Hamilton of the NTRA at [email protected].

The Eclipse Awards are named after the great 18th-century racehorse and foundation sire Eclipse, who began racing at age five and was undefeated in 18 starts, including eight walkovers. Eclipse sired the winners of 344 races, including three Epsom Derbies. The Eclipse Awards are bestowed upon horses and individuals whose outstanding achievements in North America have earned them the title of Champion in their respective categories. Those awards are voted by NTRA, Daily Racing Form and the National Turf Writers and Broadcasters (NTWAB). Eclipse Awards also are given to recognize members of the media for outstanding coverage of Thoroughbred racing.