LEXINGTON, KY.—The Jockey Club today announced the election of six new members: Len Coleman, Dr. Nancy Cox, Marc Holliday, Kosta Hronis, W. Gray Lyster IV, and David O’Farrell.
Coleman served alongside Cox as co-chair of the blue-ribbon nominating committee that was formed to select members of the board of directors and standing committees of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority (HISA). He is the former president of the National League of Professional Baseball Clubs. Coleman joined Major League Baseball in 1992 as the executive director of market development. Previously, Coleman was a municipal finance banker for Kidder, Peabody & Company and served as commissioner of both the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs and Department of Energy.
In addition to her aforementioned role as co-chair of HISA’s blue-ribbon nominating committee, Cox is the vice president for Land Grant Engagement and the dean of the College of Agriculture, Food and Environment at the University of Kentucky (UK). Prior to that, she served as associate dean for research and director of the Experiment Station at the university. Cox championed the formation of the UK Equine Initiative (now UK Ag Equine Programs), recognizing the importance of the horse industry and its significance to Kentucky.
Holliday was elected chairman of the board of directors of the New York Racing Association (NYRA) in December 2021. Appointed to the NYRA board in 2014, Holliday has chaired the NYRA Equine Safety Committee since 2015. He is the chairman and chief executive officer of SL Green Realty Corp, which is New York City’s largest owner of office properties. An owner and breeder, Holliday operates Blue Devil Racing Stable and campaigned grade 1 winner Come Dancing.
Hronis is the president of Hronis Inc., a grape and citrus company. With his wife, Stephanie, and brother, Pete, he races under Hronis Racing LLC, which won the Eclipse Award for Outstanding Owner in 2018. Top horses raced by their stable include champions Accelerate and Stellar Wind and grade 1 winners such as Flightline, Gift Box, Hard Aces, Higher Power, Iotapa, Lady of Shamrock, and Tripoli. Hronis joined the board of directors for the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club in 2018.
Lyster is co-general manager of his family’s Ashview Farm in Versailles, Kentucky. Ashview has bred or co-bred horses including champion Johannesburg, Belmont Stakes winner Mo Donegal, and multiple grade 1 winner Nest, while Lyster co-bred champion Runhappy. He is a member of the advisory board of directors for the Keeneland Association and on the Breeders’ Cup’s board of directors. He is also a former president of the Thoroughbred Club of America and the Consignors and Commercial Breeders Association.
O’Farrell serves as manager for his family’s Ocala Stud, the oldest active Thoroughbred farm in Florida and one of the leading stallion, breeding, and training operations in the country. O’Farrell is a member of Breeders’ Cup Limited and vice chairman of the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association. He is also a member of the American Graded Stakes Committee and previously served on the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance’s board of directors.
The Jockey Club Press Release
Photos courtesy of The Jockey Club
