TVG Will Telecast Claiming Crown Saturday

TVG will present live, on-site coverage of the 2004 Claiming Crown this Saturday from Canterbury Park in Shakopee, Minn. The sixth annual Claiming Crown is a six-race event with purses totaling $550,000. TVG coverage begins at 3:30 p.m. ET. The event's featured race, the $150,000 Continental Diamond Claiming Crown Jewel, will be simulcast on Fox Sports Net 2.

The Claiming Crown is open to horses that have started for claiming prices ranging from $5,000-$25,000 in the past year, and offers these horses the opportunity to compete for stakes-level purses. This marks the fifth time the event will be held at Canterbury.

In addition to the Jewel, the Claiming Crown includes the $125,000 Emerald, the $100,000 Rapid Transit, the $75,000 Glass Slipper, the $50,000 Express and the $50,000 Iron Horse. The event traditionally draws horses from the barns of America's leading trainers with top jocks aboard. This year is no exception with the nation's top two trainers in terms of wins - Steve Asmussen and Scott Lake - both well represented.

Lake, who has won six Claiming Crown races, will send out Polish Times, Rize and Spooky Mulder in the Jewel, Satan's Code and Sure You Can in the Rapid Transit and Tanqueray in the Iron Horse, while Asmussen will saddle Jimmy Jones in the Express and Moving Fever in the Glass Slipper. Also represented is John Sadler with Four Checker in the Rapid Transit and Musique Toujours in the Express.

Riding for the first time in the Claiming Crown will be Hall of Fame jockey Kent Desormeaux. The Southern California-based rider will be aboard Waki American in the Rapid Transit and Kouri Jill in the Glass Slipper. Also on hand will be Rafael Bejarano, who lead's all jockeys in wins this year.

Anchoring TVG's coverage of the Claiming Crown will be Todd Schrupp and Matt Carothers, native Minnesotans whose careers began at Canterbury, where they served as racing analysts and commentators.

0E5B8C)