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Gwen Davis / Davis Innovation

Dale Romans is the new president of the Kentucky Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association, following the long tenure of fellow trainer Rick Hiles.

Romans was voted president by the newly seated Kentucky HBPA board. The longest continuously serving board member, Romans has been on the HBPA board for most of his training career that began in 1986, with much of that as a vice president.

Trainers’ representative John Hancock and owners’ representative Travis Foley are the new vice presidents, taking over for Romans and the late Frank Jones Jr.

New Kentucky HBPA board members joining Hancock and Hiles as trainer representatives are Phil Bauer, Jordan Blair and Bret Calhoun, with Bill Morey an alternate board member. Newcomer Casey Klein joins Travis Foley and owner board members Buff Bradley and Mark Bacon, with a fifth owner representative to be named at the start of the year.

“My goal, starting immediately, is to build on the foundation Rick Hiles and the previous Kentucky HBPA boards established,” Romans said. “I’ve got a bunch of ideas, but the first thing I’m going to do is listen to the horsemen. After a lot of hard work in conjunction with our racetracks and lawmakers, Kentucky is now the no. 1 racing circuit in America and the gold standard. That’s not the end point but an ongoing challenge to find new ways to improve and grow to benefit racehorse owners and trainers, which in turn benefits the entire industry.”

Romans is a lifelong Louisvillian who started coming to Churchill Downs’s backside as a kid with his father, the late owner-trainer Jerry Romans. The younger Romans became the iconic track’s all-time win leader during the 2017 fall meet, taking the title from his idol, Hall of Famer Bill Mott, with Hall of Famer Steve Asmussen wresting the crown from Romans 2 1/2 years later.

After serving as his father’s assistant while a teenager, the graduate of Louisville’s Butler High School took out his trainer’s license in 1986 at age 18. He went 0-for-52 before starting 1987 with victory in a $3,500 claiming race at Latonia Race Course with $1,500 purchase Miss Mindy. From that inauspicious start, Romans went from a claiming trainer, as was his father, to building one of the most successful stables in the country. Along the way, he has won 14 trainer titles at Churchill Downs as well as multiple titles at Keeneland and Turfway Park.

Romans was voted the 2012 Eclipse Award winner as North America’s outstanding trainer, the same year he was honored by the Turf Publicists of America as its Big Sport of Turfdom recipient. He won the 2011 Preakness with Shackleford and Breeders’ Cup races with Tapitsfly (2009), Court Vision (2011) and Little Mike (2012). The Romans-trained Keen Ice in Saratoga’s Travers (G1) became the only horse to defeat Triple Crown winner American Pharoah in 2015. Romans’ first Eclipse champion came in 2004 with the standout turf horse Kitten’s Joy, and he won the Dubai World Cup (G1) the next year with Roses in May.

Though Saturday Romans has accrued 2,211 wins and $123 million in purses, including millionaire Grade 1 winners Silver Max, Dullahan, Paddy O’Prado, Swift Temper, Brody’s Cause, Thorn Song and Promises Fulfilled. While not as accomplished in an abbreviated career, the Romans-trained Not This Time has become one of America’s most coveted stallions.

The trainer has never lived anywhere other than Louisville’s South End. He keeps Churchill Downs as his main base, with a division at Saratoga in the summer and splitting his operation between Gulfstream Park in Florida and Trackside Training Center in Louisville in the winter. He is a member of the Churchill Downs and Gulfstream Park racing committees and on the board of the Kentucky Racing Health and Welfare Fund.

Alex Foley, the Kentucky HBPA’s executive director, said the horsemen’s organization is most appreciative of Hiles’s “unwavering service and leadership. His tenure spanned years of significant change in the industry, during which he worked tirelessly to support Kentucky’s racing community.

“Rick has been an exceptional leader and advocate for horsemen, and we are deeply grateful for his dedication to our industry,” Foley continued. “We’re excited to welcome Dale Romans as our new president. His experience and passion for the sport will be invaluable as we navigate the future.”