145th Preakness Stakes To Be Held In October

BALTIMORE, MD — The Preakness Stakes, the middle jewel of the U.S. Triple Crown, has been rescheduled for Oct. 3.

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan made the announcement during an hour-long program Saturday on NBC — the same day Preakness 145 was supposed to take place.

Today I was pleased to announce that the 145th @PreaknessStakes will be held at @PimlicoRC on October 3. This is wonderful news for the State of Maryland and our historic racing industry. pic.twitter.com/sJcSQHi4qx
— Governor Larry Hogan (@GovLarryHogan) May 16, 2020

The splashy sporting event at Baltimore's Pimlico Race Course was rescheduled due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

Preakness, which started in 1873, is normally held on the third Saturday in May — two weeks after the Kentucky Derby and three weeks before the Belmont Stakes.

Rather than teeming with horses and jockeys as spring arrived, Pimlico Race Course drew healthcare workers, National Guard members, and those infected with COVID-19. The property transformed into a coronavirus testing site starting April 10 for those in northwest Baltimore, where the 21215 ZIP code is a hot spot for the new coronavirus.