The two-day Pan American Conference, co-hosted by The Jockey Club and the Latin American Racing Channel (LARC), concluded Friday afternoon at the Grand Hyatt Washington with presentations on a wide variety of topics by prominent individuals from inside and outside the Thoroughbred racing industry.

More than 400 participants from 25 countries attended the conference, and then attended Saturday’s 142nd running of the Preakness Stakes at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland.

The lineup of speakers on Friday included:

• Bill Thomason, the president and chief executive officer of Keeneland Association;
• Jon Miller, president of programming for NBC Sports;
• Noted sports anti-doping attorney Professor Richard McLaren, OC;
• Louis Romanet, chairman of the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities; and
• Larry Bowers, PhD, who served as chief science officer of the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) until his recent retirement.

Belinda Stronach, the chairman and president of The Stronach Group, delivered the keynote address to conclude the business portion of conference late Friday afternoon. She reminded delegates that they must work together to ensure the sport’s future