The National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA), Daily Racing Form and the National Turf Writers and Broadcasters (NTWAB) announced today that Glenye Cain Oakford of Daily Racing Form has won the 2012 Media Eclipse Award in the Audio/Multi-Media Internet category for “Zenyatta: Wait for First Foal Combines Science, Art and Anticipation,” which appeared on drf.com on February 28.

With heightened interest of the impending birth of 2010 Horse of the Year Zenyatta‘s first foal, Oakford, of Lexington, Ky., developed a multi-media project which captured a behind the scenes look at the people who are responsible for the demanding and often exhausting world of late night foaling of Thoroughbreds. Oakford combined online text of the basics, and potential problems, of the foaling process with a video she filmed, produced and narrated of Eduardo Terrazas and his night-watchman at Terrazas Thoroughbreds, assisting in the birth of a new foal.

The 42nd Annual Eclipse Awards dinner and ceremony will be held on Saturday, January 19, 2013, at Gulfstream Park Racetrack and Casino in Hallandale Beach, Fla.

“I’m thrilled. It’s tremendously energizing and heartening to earn this recognition from one’s colleagues, and I will treasure it,” said Oakford, who is senior bloodstock correspondent for Daily Racing Form. “But what makes this most special to me is that the Eclipse Award is also the racehorses’ championship. To be placed in their company is very humbling and an honor indeed.

“Night-watching during foaling season might look like someone just sitting around in a barn all night, but in fact it’s a season-long test of endurance that is fraught with tension and worry,” said Oakford. “Still, it’s also about sweet anticipation, and the reward is so obvious when a mare delivers her foal safely. The public doesn’t often get to see that drama, and I hoped through the video and story they could. I’m very grateful to Eduardo and night-watchman Troy Saylor for telling that story so eloquently and in such touching, honest, personal terms.”

From the accompanying online text of the entry:

The long wait and the thrill of anticipation are familiar to Thoroughbred breeders around the world, whether they wait up with their mares themselves or await a manager’s midnight phone call announcing a foal’s arrival, the moment that pedigrees on paper take living form. Especially for those who sit through the night watching for signs of imminent labor, the season between January and early June is an exercise in patient endurance.

The entry can be viewed at the following site: http://www.drf.com/news/zenyatta-wait-first-foal-combines-science-art-and-anticipation

Honorable mention in the Audio/Multi-Media Internet category went to Paulick Report “Breeders’ Cup or Bust: Stories from the Southwest, which focused on efforts to save ex-racehorses in New Mexico.

Judges in the Audio and Multi Media Internet category were Mike Kane, Thoroughbred journalist; Michael Brunker of MSNBC.com and Brian Nadeau of Horseplayer Now.

The Eclipse Awards are named after the great 18th-century racehorse and foundation sire Eclipse, who began racing at age five and was undefeated in 18 starts, including eight walkovers. Eclipse sired the winners of 344 races, including three Epsom Derbies. The Eclipse Awards are bestowed upon horses and individuals whose outstanding achievements in North America have earned them the title of Champion in their respective categories. Those awards are voted by NTRA, Daily Racing Form and the National Turf Writers and Broadcasters (NTWAB). Eclipse Awards also are given to recognize members of the media for outstanding coverage of Thoroughbred racing.

The Eclipse Awards are presented by Daily Racing Form, The Stronach Group and Breeders’ Cup and produced by the National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA). Official Partners of the Eclipse Awards include Adequan, Besilu Stables, Keeneland, Kendall-Jackson, NOA Watches and Roberts Communications. The official hotel of the Eclipse Awards is the Westin Diplomat Resort and Spa.

Tickets to the Eclipse Awards are available for $375 each. Order forms for tickets are available at. http://ntra.kinsta.cloud/en/eclipse-awards/2012-2013-awards/. Hotel Reservations at the Westin Diplomat can be made at https://www.starwoodmeeting.com/Book/eclipseawards. For additional information, please contact Michele Ravencraft of the NTRA at mravencraft@ntra.com.