Ottawa’s Rideau Carleton Raceway has ended its harness racing operations after more than 60 years, the latest shutdown in Canada’s horse racing industry.
Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Ottawa announced on April 2 that, after “extensive discussions” with provincial horse racing authority Ontario Racing, there will be no 2026 season at the track, which has hosted racing since the early 1960s.
The casino said that despite the fact that it invested millions of dollars to rebuild the racing paddock and upgrade legacy infrastructure, “the long-term sustainability of the racing program could not be achieved.”
“We made significant investments in racing infrastructure and adjusted our operations multiple times over the last three years; however, a sustainable path forward was not possible,” said Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Ottawa President Christine Crump.
“Many of us hold deep respect and fond memories of the racing industry but consumer preferences have changed. This is a sad time for our team members, the horse racing community and all those directly impacted. Racing at Rideau Carleton Raceway will always be remembered as an important chapter in the site’s history.”
Hard Rock said that all directly impacted team members are being offered alternative employment opportunities within the organization, along with any necessary skills training to support career transitions.
Andrew Gaughan, Independent Chair of Ontario Racing, said that the organization will dedicate a portion of the funding it has been providing to Rideau Carleton Raceway towards a relocation support program, while the remainder will go back into purses for live horse racing at other Ontario Standardbred racetracks.
Harness association releases frank statement
Hard Rock took over the day-to-day casino operations at Rideau Carleton in 2017 and has run three seasons under sole ownership.
The National Capital Region Harness Horse Association (NCRHHA) said that Hard Rock decided to close the venue permanently despite the collaborative efforts of Ontario Racing and the NCRHHA.
“Fading from our racing scene here in the NCR is a racing industry and private sector business relationship that was once viewed as the best and most successful in the province… then came Hard Rock,” read a statement primarily attributed to NCRHHA President Gordon McDonald.
“Words cannot express our disappointment with Hard Rock’s decision to close one of the most successful racetracks in Ontario; as well that this decision may have been managed with greater respect and regard for our racing community following closure of the backstretch in 2025 and over four months of winter shutdown during which the NCRHHA racing community continued to invest in facilities and livestock with the expectation of racing opening in the spring to provide opportunity to recover these investments.”
While 11 standardbred racetracks remain in Ontario, Peterborough’s Kawartha Downs is now the only operational harness track in the province that is located east of Toronto.
Meanwhile, Hard Rock opened the $350m Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Ottawa last July, Hard Rock’s first fully integrated casino resort in Canada and the only Hard Rock-branded casino in the country. The resort includes a 150-room hotel, an expanded gaming floor with around 1,500 slot machines and 40 table games, a Hard Rock Café and the 1,900-seat Hard Rock Live events venue.
Rideau Carleton closure follows BC body blow
The news of the iconic Rideau Carleton Raceway’s shutdown comes just a few months after British Columbia’s last operational horse track announced its own closure.
In December, days after the B.C. government announced it would no longer dedicate a portion of revenue from slot machine gaming to the horse racing operations at Hastings Racecourse & Casino, the venue said that all thoroughbred horse racing at the facility would end, effective immediately. Hastings had hosted horse racing since the late 19th century and was the last remaining active course in B.C. after Fraser Downs in Surrey closed suddenly last summer when the city terminated the lease agreement.
Great Canadian Entertainment Regional VP Wayne Odegard said the closure of Hastings was based on “a lack of economic feasibility” after funding was pulled.
B.C. Solicitor General and Minister of Public Safety Nina Krieger said the government’s decision to stop dedicating slots funding to the track was made after a review by the province found “significant financial sustainability concerns” that suggested that maintaining B.C.’s horse racing industry was not viable because of a range of factors, primarily declining revenues and lower attendance at racing events.
Ontario tracks got slots reprieve
In contrast, multiple racetracks in Ontario including Kawartha Downs got a lifeline at the end of 2025 when Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG) reversed a previous decision to end its Optional Slots at Racetracks Program (OSARP), a temporary support system that allows certain racetracks to benefit from slots at nearby casinos.
Meanwhile, Ontario’s horse racing wagering industry continues to evolve.
OLG and Woodbine Entertainment Group launched online and mobile parimutuel betting on live races last August, making OLG the first Canadian provincial lottery corporation to offer such products. Woodbine already had a similar deal with commercial sportsbook bet365.
Woodbine hosts thoroughbred racing at Toronto’s Woodbine Racetrack and standardbred racing at Woodbine Mohawk Park in Milton. It is the only company federally authorized to offer parimutuel wagering on horse racing in Canada, wherein players’ bets go into a shared pool and winners share the pot. Fixed-odds betting on horse racing is illegal in Canada.
