Churchill Downs Explores Options for Fair Grounds Race Meet

Churchill Downs Incorporated is exploring options to conduct a portion of Fair Grounds Race Course's 2005-2006 live race meet at Louisiana Downs in Bossier City, La. In making the announcement, CDI's President and Chief Executive Officer Thomas H. Meeker also elaborated on CDI's ongoing efforts to locate and provide financial assistance to its Louisiana employees, as well as other offers of assistance from within the horse racing industry.

Discussions Underway to Conduct Fair Grounds Race Dates at Louisiana Downs

"While we are still assessing the state of our Louisiana business operations, it is highly improbable that we could conduct a race meet at Fair Grounds Race Course given the level of devastation now evident throughout the New Orleans community," said Meeker. "We are currently in discussions with the management team at Louisiana Downs, its parent company, Harrah's Entertainment Inc., and our horsemen to determine the feasibility of running a portion of Fair Grounds' 2005-2006 race dates at Harrah's Louisiana Downs. We hope to have more concrete information to share with regards to a revised racing schedule in a matter of days."

Company Efforts Continue to Locate Louisiana Employees

"Our primary focus continues to be locating our Louisiana team members who have been displaced by the storm to get them immediate aid in the form of paychecks, benefit information and additional forms of assistance," Meeker continued. "We have established the CDI Louisiana Employee Hotline (877-244-5536), a toll-free number that puts our Louisiana team members in direct contact with our corporate office where human resources personnel are ready to assist them. Louisiana employees can also send their contact information to us through Fair Grounds' Web site, www.fgno.com. To date, we have received hundreds of calls and electronic messages from Louisiana our team members, who are scattered across the country. We sincerely appreciate the assistance offered by media outlets and our contacts throughout the horse racing industry in publicizing our employee hotline."

CDI Employees Raising Funds to Aid Coworkers

"CDI has an emergency relief fund in place to help its employees across the country," added Meeker. "The Company's HORSE Program (Helping Others Receive Support in Emergencies) was designed to provide financial aid to employees and their dependent families in times of emergency, and CDI employees company-wide are making donations to the HORSE Program to help their Louisiana coworkers. Our Company will also participate in industry-wide efforts to raise funds for Louisiana horsemen and their families."

Sam Houston Race Park Offers Assistance

"We have received a generous offer of support from the management team at Sam Houston Race Park in Houston, Texas," remarked Meeker. "Through our efforts to locate our Louisiana team members, we have learned that many of them are now in the Houston area. The team at Sam Houston, which conducts both Quarter Horse and Thoroughbred racing, is prepared to offer employment opportunities to our displaced employees. We sincerely appreciate the track's willingness to reach out to our Louisiana team members in their time of need."

As the Company has previously stated, CDI carries insurance on Fair Grounds and its affiliated businesses to cover property loss and business interruptions.