Chairman of the Committee to Rename the Little ‘A’ Racetrack and Sea Cows Bay Softball Field Mr. Julian Willock has embraced the recent passage of a Motion in the House of Assembly to officially rename the Territory’s only horseracing facility in tribute to Mr. Ellis Thomas.

During the Ninth Sitting of the First Session of the First House of Assembly of the Virgin Islands last Friday, 27 June, Premier Honourable Ralph T. O’Neal, OBE, moved a Motion for the racetrack to be renamed “Ellis Thomas Downs.”

The Premier, while moving the Motion, credited Mr. Thomas for being a catalyst behind the development of horseracing as a well-liked sport in the Virgin Islands.

“Ellis Thomas played a key role in horseracing, horseback riding, and contributed immensely to the development of the sport in the Virgin Islands (British),” he told the House. The Premier also commended Mr. Thomas’s contribution in developing the Territory’s first modern horseracing facility in the late 1950s.

After the Premier moved the Motion at last Friday’s sitting of the House of Assembly there was unanimous support for the proposal from members on both sides of the aisle, many of whom expressed support for the Premier’s description of Mr. Thomas as a racing historian and pioneer horserace organizer in the Territory.

The Chairman of the Committee to Rename the Little A Racetrack and Sea Cows Bay Softball Field, Mr. Julian Willock, said the Motion’s passage came as a significant step forward in overall efforts to have the racetrack officially renamed.

“This basically gives the Committee the green light to increase its planning activities in preparation for the grand renaming ceremony, which will occur later this year. Last week’s passage of the Motion in the House gives the Committee final endorsement to proceed with plans for the official renaming,” he said.

Mr. Willock said the Committee is extremely pleased that the Motion had a successful journey through the House of Assembly, while adding that Committee will soon announce a new date for the official renaming  ceremony.

Mr. Ellis Thomas is highly esteemed and respected in the British and U.S. Virgin Islands as a pioneer in the sport of horseracing. After becoming involved with the sport at a very early age, he participated in horseracing events at different venues around the Territory. These included Lower Estate, Cane Garden Bay, Fat Hog’s Bay, the Hope, the Sunday Morning Well, Sandy Ground, and Sea Cows Bay where the Little A Racetrack is located.

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