Saratoga Casino and Raceway has announced that Peter James ‘PJ’ Iovino is its new race secretary.

Iovino will be replacing Don Hoover, who is retiring at the end of this month after serving as race secretary for Saratoga Harness for 12 years.

Hailing from Brooklyn, Iovino’s lifelong passion for harness racing developed at an early age through trips to Monticello Raceway to watch family-owned horses. His involvement in the industry commenced in 1997 when he began as a program editor and chart-caller at Sports Eye, a Long Island-based publishing company that produced multiple harness racing publications. After exploring other opportunities, Iovino returned to his roots as a chart-caller and race office assistant at Freehold Raceway in 2006. He quickly moved up the ranks and was promoted to assistant race secretary in 2008. Iovino also served as a freelance correspondent for the Daily Racing Form.

“PJ’s unique skill set and experience are a perfect fit for us at Saratoga Harness,” said John Mattarazzo, director of Racing Operations at Saratoga Casino and Raceway. “We’re confident he’ll do a great job here.”

In his new role, Iovino will be responsible for creating the racing programs at Saratoga Casino and Raceway.

“This opportunity with Saratoga is truly a dream job for me,” said Iovino. “I couldn’t be more excited and I look forward to beginning a long and successful tenure with Saratoga Harness.”

(With files from Saratoga Casino and Raceway)