On May 22, Doug McNair and James MacDonald will travel to Sweden to compete in the 2019 World Driving Championship (WDC).
McNair, winner of the 2018 National Driving Championship and MacDonald, defending World Driving Champion, will be among 12 of the finest harness racing drivers in the world! If you would like to show your support, we’ve got two ways you can do this before they make the trip to Stockholm.
If you’re planning on attending Woodbine Mohawk Park on Saturday, May 18 for Fireworks Family Night, stop by the Standardbred Canada booth and sign the Good Luck banner. Doug & James will be on hand to meet and greet racing fans from 5:30 p.m. to 6:15 p.m.
The banner will be presented to Doug and James following the Canadian colours presentation for Doug McNair with Standardbred Canada Chair, Mark Horner and Dan Gall, President and CEO of Standardbred Canada, doing the honours.
For anyone who isn’t going to Fireworks Family Night, you can still show your support by sending your good luck messages to one or both of them by posting a comment below.
Let’s take a look and see how McNair and MacDonald are prepping for their trip and their great Swedish adventure!
The WDC competition features 12 drivers in 24 races. Drivers earn points based on their finishing position and the top point earner at the end of the 24 races will be declared the 2019 World Driving Champion and win $25,000 (US) in prize money.
The first leg will be at Solvalla with three races on Friday, May 24 and one race on Saturday, May 25.
There will be no WDC races contested on the Elitloppet day on Sunday, May 26. Lindesbergs Fornaboda track will host the third leg and five races on Monday (May 27), followed by five more races on Tuesday (May 28) at Sundbyholm in Eskilstuna, then an additional five races at Dalatravet Rättvik on Wednesday (May 29).
After a one day break the 2019 World Driving Champion will be crowned on Friday, May 31 after the final five races at Gävle.
Canadians have won the World Driving Championship on five previous occasions. Hervé Filion won the inaugural edition in 1970, his nephew Sylvain Filion won in 1999 and Jody Jamieson won the 2001 and 2011 editions of the WDC. In 2017, James MacDonald became the first Canadian driver to win a WDC contested solely on home soil.
Trot Insider will be providing daily coverage of the WDC, including video, photos and reports.
Best of luck guys, have a
Best of luck guys, have a great trip!