Standardbred Canada is pleased to announce the finalists for the 2025 Media Excellence Awards, sponsored by Ontario Racing, which will be presented at the 37th O’Brien Awards Gala on Saturday, Jan. 31, 2026, at the J-AAR Expo Centre at Western Fair District.
Now in its 18th year, and sponsored by Ontario Racing for the last nine, the Standardbred Canada Media Excellence Awards program honours those who have, through one piece of exceptional work, covered Canadian harness racing extraordinarily and of broad national appeal.
New for the 2025 awards is the addition of a third finalist in each award category, increased from the traditional two. The nine finalists for 2025 Standardbred Canada Media Excellence Awards were the top three point-earners in their respective categories. They are listed below.
The finalists for Outstanding Written Work are Chris Lomon, Nicholas Oakes and John Rallis.
Chris Lomon, the winner in this category in 2023, makes another appearance as a finalist in 2025 for authoring "Manitoba Miracles," the inspiring story of Emmetts Buddy and Grit N Grace as they progressed from small-town Manitoba to the pinnacle of Canadian harness racing. The story was published in the September 2025 edition of TROT Magazine.
Nicholas Oakes will be seeking his first Media Excellence Award for "Harnessing a Legacy: The Life and Vision of Kent Oakes." This tribute to his late father, Kent Oakes, the recipient of the 2024 Cam Fella Award, was published in the June 2025 edition of TROT Magazine.
Defending champion John Rallis looks to go back-to-back in the Outstanding Written Work category with his anecdote, "A Grandfather's Prophecy; A Young Driver's Ascent." The piece was a TROT Magazine feature in the August 2025 issue and profiles the career of Brett Beckwith as he exceeds the expectations set for him.
The finalists for Outstanding Video, Film or Broadcast are Cujo Entertainment, Horse Racing Alberta & Shine Light Entertainment and The New York Racing Association Inc.
Defending champion Cujo Entertainment is a finalist for its excerpt of the "2025 Breeders Crown On Prime Time - Night 1," which aired nationally on Game+ Network on Oct. 24, 2025 from Woodbine Mohawk Park. The broadcast was produced by a team of 10 individuals, including Executive Producer Curtis MacDonald, Technical Producer Cameron Chick and Co-Producer/Director Luke Van Belkom. Hosts on the show included Mark McKelvie, Greg Blanchard, Paul MacDonell and Jaimi MacDonald.
Horse Racing Alberta & Shine Light Entertainment, winners of this award in 2022, are finalists for their feature, "The Crackers Hot Shot Standardbred Racing Video." This six-minute feature that was posted on the Horse Racing Alberta website on Oct. 25, 2025 was produced by Jeff Robillard of Horse Racing Alberta, and Mike Little of Shine Light Entertainment. The video illustrates the remarkable life and career of pacing mare Crackers Hot Shot, from near-death survival to on-track dominance, to broodmare excellence.
The New York Racing Association Inc. is a finalist for their excerpt of Fox Sports' "Special Coverage of the Breeders Crown - Night 2," which aired nationally in the United States of America on FS2 on Oct. 25, 2025. The broadcast was produced by Bobby Klatt and directed by Mitch Levites, with feature productions by Melanie Wignall. Eric Donovan was the Executive Producer and field production was handled by Mary McDermott. Chris Griffin and Paul Verderosa anchored the coverage from the New York studio while Gabe Prewitt, Jessica Otten and Jenna Otten were the on-site hosts at Woodbine Mohawk Park.
The finalists in the Outstanding Photography category are Claus Andersen, Clive Cohen and Michelle Hogan.
Claus Andersen, the 2009 and 2011 winner for Outstanding Photography, is a finalist for his shot of The Last Martini and Miki And Minnie in a dead heat for win as they hit the wire together in the final of the Breeders Crown for three-year-old pacing fillies on Oct. 25, 2025 at Woodbine Mohawk Park. The photo was featured the next day in the Oct. 26 online issue of Harness Racing Update.
Clive Cohen has dominated the Outstanding Photography category, having won it nine times. The defending champion is looking to win a 10th award with his 2025 photo, “Harvest Moon Racing." The photo was taken on Sept. 8, 2025 at Woodbine Mohawk Park and published the same evening to the Woodbine Mohawk Park Instagram and X feeds.
Michelle Hogan, a well-known equine artist and photographer in North America, is a finalist for Outstanding Photography for her still, “The Outrider” taken at Woodbine Mohawk Park and published in the July 2025 edition of TROT Magazine.
Standardbred Canada would like to extend its thanks and appreciation to everyone who submitted entries for the Media Excellence Awards and to the volunteer judges and Ontario Racing for its continued support and sponsorship of the program.
Judges in the Outstanding Written Work category included Jackie Zions, Media Manager at Equine Guelph, and Caroline Frederik, a veteran technical writer.
Judges in the Outstanding Video, Film or Broadcast category were Jim Bannon, a veteran journalist and a member of the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame, Joe Tilley, a former sports anchor at CTV and current host of Joe Tilley's Great Canadian Sports Show on YouTube and Facebook, and Claude Feig, a national news/sports anchor with the Canadian Broadcast Corporation (CBC).
Judges in the Outstanding Photography category were Brandon Hall, executive assistant with the Ontario Equine Federation, and Shawn Hamilton, owner of CLiX Photography whose passion for photographing horses has landed her photos on the covers and inside magazines such as Corinthian Horse Sport magazine, The Canadian Horsemen, Horse Canada and Equus.
To see a list of past winners of the Media Excellence Awards, click here.
(Standardbred Canada Press Release)