No Fans at the 2020 Kentucky Derby

COVID-19 has been playing fast and loose with the Kentucky Derby. First, it was moved from the first Saturday in May to Labor Day Weekend.

Then, it was announced that there would be no general admission and no one in the infield.

Now, the word has come down that there will be no fans in attendance at the 2020 Kentucky Derby Saturday, September 5th.

As recently as last week, it was announced that attendance would be limited to "guests with reserved seats with a maximum of 40% occupancy of reserved seating," according to Churchill Downs Incorporated.

But now, GlobeNewsWire--citing Churchill Downs as its source--is reporting that there will be no fans at the legendary venue on Derby Day, with one of the major criteria for the decision being the rapid rise in the COVID-19 positivity rate among 70,000 patients test at Norton Healthcare.

This decision also means there will be no fans in attendance at the Kentucky Oaks on Friday, September 4th as well as at any of the Churchill Downs races from September 1st through September 5th.

Ticket holders for all Derby-related racing events will be issued refunds.

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