James MacDonald was presented with the official Canadian driving colours for the upcoming 2017 World Driving Championship (WDC) trackside at Grand River Raceway on Industry Day on Monday, August 7.
The 31-year-old Guelph resident will represent Canada in this year’s WDC, presented by Standardbred Canada from August 12–18.
Dan Gall, President and CEO of Standardbred Canada, along with SC Director Mark Horner and SC Chair Joanne Colville made the presentation after the afternoon’s eighth race.
MacDonald, a winner of 1,678 career races and career earnings of over $22 million was also presented with a Good Luck banner signed by racing fans at Mohawk Racetrack and Grand River Raceway. The banner will travel with MacDonald from event to event during the WDC. MacDonald won the Ontario Regional Driving Championship last June at Grand River and was runner-up in the National Driving Championship last October.
“We have asked James to stand in as our runner-up, and James MacDonald has agreed at the very last minute to represent Canada for the World Driving Championship,” Gall said.
Addressing MacDonald directly, Gall concluded: “Thank you very much, James; we wish you all the best. On behalf of Standardbred Canada, the Board of Directors, our employees, and our thousands of members across Canada, thank you very much.”
The WDC will showcase drivers from 11 countries and consists of 21 races spanning five different racetracks in four provinces. Drivers will earn points based on their finishing position and the top point-earner will be declared the 2017 World Driving Champion and win $25,000 in prize money.
The first leg will kick off at Century Downs on Saturday, August 12. The drivers will then head to Ontario for the next two legs at Mohawk Racetrack in Campbellville on August 14 and Georgian Downs in Innisfil on August 15. The action then moves to Trois-Rivières, Que. on August 16, where Hippodrome 3R will host the fourth leg before the drivers head to Prince Edward Island's Red Shores Racetrack and Casino at Charlottetown Driving Park for the fifth and final leg of the Championship on August 18, one of the major highlights of Old Home Week.
The WDC, along with the 25th anniversary edition of the World Trotting Conference, to be hosted in Charlottetown, are both held every two years and will coincide with the 250th Anniversary of horse racing in Canada, and Canada 150 celebrations.