Jason Settlemoir, a ‘youthful veteran’ of the sport who has spent a quarter-century working in harness racing at several of its premier locations, has been selected for a six-year term as a member of the Hall of Fame Screening Committee in the U.S.

Settlemoir was appointed by Tim Bojarski, president of the U.S. Harness Writers Association, per the organization's by-laws.

Settlemoir started his harness career as a teenager. He was associated with the Terry Holton Stable and worked in various media and operational capacities at Ohio’s racing venues, including the Little Brown Jug Grand Circuit meets at the Delaware County Fairgrounds.

Settlemoir was then tapped to be an executive by Jeff Gural when he purchased New York tracks Tioga Downs and Vernon Downs, and again later when Gural took over operations of Meadowlands Racetrack in New Jersey. There, Settlemoir continued on to his present position of general manager and chief executive officer of the world-famous mile oval. He also serves on the executive boards of the U.S. Trotting Association and Harness Tracks of America.

Settlemoir has already served two years on the screening committee as a voting member while president of USHWA between 2010 and 2012, as all USHWA presidents are voting members of every USHWA committee.

“Jason Settlemoir is a rare combination of old school and new breed when it comes to harness racing,” said Bojarski. “Despite his age, his vast experience in the sport began while working for midwest racing legends 20 years ago and continued to develop through today, where he now oversees meets that feature the best trainers and drivers in North America.”

“Settlemoir’s high moral standards, hands-on knowledge of harness racing and overall love of the sport make him uniquely qualified to view potential Hall of Fame candidates through the eyes of both horseman and administrator. And it’s that perspective that will vet and deliver the best possible candidates to the highest accolade in racing.”

The USHWA Hall of Fame Screening Committee gathers together the biographies of nominations for the hall, which must come from the chapters of USHWA, and discusses them at meetings over the Fourth of July weekend in Goshen, NY, the home of the hall and the Harness Racing Museum. The nominations are also discussed with an advisory committee of members of the Hall of Fame, and then the group’s choices for ballot candidates are decided and go before the electorate, eligible USHWA members and Hall of Famers, later in the summer.

(USHWA)