Last year’s Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint (G1T) winner Nobals  and his equally fast and talented stablemate One Timer  will both run in Kentucky Downs‘ $2 million Ainsworth Turf Sprint (G2T) Sept. 7, trainer Larry Rivelli said.

Of course, Rivelli said the same thing last year. One Timer indeed ran at Kentucky, losing the six-furlong Turf Sprint to Gear Jockey  on a head bob in a four-horse photo after winning Kentucky Downs’ Franklin-Simpson Stakes (G2) in 2022 as a 3-year-old. Meanwhile, Rivelli redirected Nobals at the last minute to Colonial Downs for the $150,000 Da Hoss Stakes, which the gelding won en route to a Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint victory.

“Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah,” Rivelli said cheerfully of last year’s switcheroo. “It’s $2 million this year. … The money is so big, it is very possible” he’ll run both.

Kentucky Downs’ all-turf meet runs Aug. 29, 31 and Sept. 1, 5, 7, 8 and 11.

With the purse doubled this year to $2 million for Kentucky-breds and $1 million for everyone else, the Ainsworth Turf Sprint is both a stepping stone to the $1 million Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint and an objective in its own right. The Ainsworth winner earns a fees-paid spot in the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint Nov. 2 at Del Mar as part of the Breeders’ Cup Challenge Series: Win and You’re In.

Both Nobals and One Timer have raced only once this year. Nobals was fourth by a total of three-quarters of a length in a July 28 Saratoga allowance race. One Timer, who wasn’t selected for the Breeders’ Cup field last year, was second in Hawthorne Race Course‘s Robert S. Molaro Memorial the same day in his first start since Kentucky Downs.

Rivelli said the time off was by design. 

“I’m just trying to set up for this whole run coming up here,” he said. “I know how impossible it is to keep them going for a whole year. We’re just going to target the late end of the year, which is Kentucky Downs with all this money and then the Breeders’ Cup.

“They’re doing better than they were doing last year, to be honest. Their last race, I was a little bit disappointed with both of them but really no reason, no excuse. I had them ready, at least I think I did. Nobals got kind of a (bad) trip, got hung wide and didn’t really get to run the race he wants to run and got beat only three-quarters of a length. But on the turf, two lengths is like eight lengths on the dirt. You see the horses a neck, a head, a neck, a neck, that type of thing. We were on the good end of a head last year (in the Breeders’ Cup), so I’m all right. If you had to say you could be fourth in an allowance race and take the Breeders’ Cup, I’ll take that.

“But they’re both doing fantastic. I’m hoping the second race off the layoff there will be no excuse. They’ll be tight, they’re going to be fit. They were going in last time, but maybe they just needed a race. The horse (Mischievous Rogue) that beat One Timer at Hawthorne was the only horse in the race that looked like it had a shot to beat us, and it did.”

Vincent Foglia’s Patricia’s Hope owns all of Nobals and half of One Timer, with frequent partner Richard Ravin owning the other half of One Timer.

“They’re pretty similar horses, if you look at their history,” Rivelli said. “They’re not necessarily five-eighths turf horses. Nobals broke the track record at Woodbine going three-quarters. One Timer won going 6 1/2 at Kentucky Downs. Three-quarters, 6 1/2, I’m not afraid to run either of them. My horses have so much speed naturally that I’d assume they’d be in front with not as much company as they’d have in a five-eighths race where everybody has to go, go, go.”

Pedigree note: One Timer is the first foal out of the Blame   mare Spanish Star , whose second foal to run is Iowa Oaks winner Just Basking , the third-place finisher in the 1 1/4-mile Alabama (G1) at Saratoga Race Course Aug. 17.

The Chicago-based Rivelli plans to run more horses at Kentucky Downs than he has before. He hopes to run 2-for-2 Shezafunkydrummer and Ellis Park Debutante runner-up Rich City Girl  in a 2-year-old stakes in their turf debuts. Homie , whose only start was a turf victory at Horseshoe Indianapolis, also will be pointed for a stakes. Shezafunkydrummer and Homie were set to run in Woodbine grass stakes that were washed out Saturday. Rivelli said they now will train up to the Kentucky Downs races.

Kentucky Downs’ four 2-year-old stakes are each worth $1 million for Kentucky-breds ($500,000 for the others).

“That’s unbelievable,” Rivelli said. “You could retire them if they win, makes their whole career. It’s fantastic there. There are a lot of horses entered in every race, The betting’s good. The purses are big, a lot of people showing up to run. I like it. I’m a fan.”

This press release has been edited for content and style by BloodHorse Staff.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — With new rules introduced last year, Kentucky State Fair attendees under 18 will need a chaperone 21 or older to enter the fairgrounds after 6 p.m. Monday through Thursday and all-day Friday through Sunday. 

Ian Cox, state fair spokesperson, said it’s to ensure everyone has a safe time. 

“For us, this is a policy that’s reinforcing the family-friendly environment we already have, reminding people you should come out with your family and celebrate this,” Cox said. “If you’re not coming out with your family, you may not be doing it right.” 

Lucy Champelli and Laurel Peyton said while they haven’t attended the fair in years, they appreciate this kind of policy as adults. 

“I think it’s interesting … I guess people who are teenagers should be able to walk around freely,” Peyton said. “I think this teaches them how to be mature when you’re in big crowds like this.” 

Debbie Blotz said she has been coming to the fair all her life and thinks it is smart to enforce a minor attendance policy.

“I support it because these kids come out, get in trouble and start fighting, and there are families around,” Blotz said. “We don’t need that.” 

Chaperones are required to remain at the fair if they are bringing minors. Jennifer Sharp, who escorted her son and his friends, said 18 years old may be too old for a chaperone.

“It’s for safety reasons, but I do believe if you’ve got a kid that’s over 16, I think they are OK,” she said. 

Each adult can only chaperone six minors at a time while more than six individuals under 18 will require an additional chaperone for every six minors. Learn more about the policy on the fair’s website. 

Kentucky’s 2024 Hall of Fame inductees include Olympic and NCAA champions.

Jasmine Camacho-Quinn (2016-2018 track and field), John Cropp (administrator/coach), Henrik Larsen (2018 rifle), Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone (2018 track and field), Jodie Meeks (2007-2009 men’s basketball) and Corey Peters (2006-2009 football) recently were chosen.

The new Wildcats Hall of Famers will be inducted during Hall of Fame Weekend on Sept. 20-21.

Camacho-Quinn is the first athlete in Puerto Rico history to win two Olympic medals. She won gold in the 100-meter hurdles at the Tokyo Olympics and bronze at the Paris Olympics. At UK, she was a two-time NCAA champion in the 100 hurdles and was part of the 2017 4×100 relay team that finished first at the national meet. She holds the program record in the 100 hurdles.

Cropp worked in multiple roles in UK athletics during his 22-year tenure. One of his most prominent accomplishments was being a founding administrator for the Kentucky softball program in 1997. After he retired, the softball stadium was named after him in 2013.

Larsen won a gold medal in the smallbore competition at the 2022 ISSF World Championships. In one year with the Wildcats, he won the 2018 NCAA air rifle individual national championship and set program records in smallbore, air rifle and aggregate. He was named the 2018 NCAA Shooter of the Year and NCAA Freshman of the Year.

McLaughlin-Levrone is a four-time Olympic gold medalist and holds the 400 hurdles world record. In one year at Kentucky, she was an NCAA champion in the 400 hurdles and broke the collegiate record (52.75 seconds). She was an SEC champion in the indoor 400 and outdoor 400 hurdles and 4×400 relay.

Meeks played on seven teams in 10 seasons in the NBA. He holds Kentucky’s single-season record for 3-pointers made (117) and has the second-most points scored in a season (854).

Peters played 13 years in the NFL with the Atlanta Falcons, Arizona Cardinals and Jacksonville Jaguars. In his senior year at Kentucky, he recorded 56 tackles, including 12 for loss, and four sacks. He earned All-SEC first-team honors and was named UK’s Outstanding Defensive Player.

 Louisville women’s golf head coach Whitney Young will be inducted into the Class of 2024 Kentucky Golf Hall of Fame.

Young competed for Glasgow High School in the 1994 Kentucky State Championships as a fourth grader. At 13 years old, she became the youngest winner of the Kentucky Amateur in 1998. She also won the 1999 and 2000 titles.

She was a four-time AJGA Polo Golf All-American and represented the United States in the 2002 PING Junior Solheim Cup.

Young was a three-time National Golf Coaches Association All-American at Georgia and a four-time first-team All-SEC honoree.

Young started as an assistant coach with the Cardinals, but she has been the head coach for the last five years. Young has led the Cardinals to two regionals. In 2021, they hosted the regional for the first time in program history.

More information on the ceremony will be released later.

More: Louisville’s Valhalla Golf Club to host Solheim Cup. What to know about LPGA Tour event

ESPN college basketball analyst Jay Bilas will give a lecture Sept. 6 at Bellarmine’s Frazier Hall.

Bilas plans to discuss name, image and likeness activities in Division I sports, the transfer portal and the evolving landscape of college sports.

The lecture is scheduled to start at 4 p.m., and admission is free. Those who plan to attend are asked to register by Sept. 2 at the Wyatt Lecture registration site.

Louisville basketball mailbag: Which players stood out in Pat Kelsey’s unofficial debut?

Trinity High School senior pitcher Colton Cravens recently announced his commitment to Northwestern.

As a junior, Cravens struck out 26 batters and recorded four wins with a 2.30 ERA in 24 ⅓ innings.

Kentucky high school football preview: What to know about Louisville-area teams, players

• Racing Louisville FC will host Chicago Red Stars at 7:30 p.m. Saturday.
• Louisville City FC will visit Hartford Athletic at 7 p.m. Saturday.
• The Louisville Bats will host the Gwinnett Stripers in a six-game series. Games begin at 6:35 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday and at 7:15 p.m. Friday and Saturday. The last game of the series is scheduled for 1:05 p.m. Aug. 25.
• Louisville men’s soccer will host Jacksonville at 5 p.m. Thursday.
• Louisville women’s soccer will host New Hampshire at 7:30 p.m. Thursday. Then, the Cardinals will visit Northern Kentucky at 5 p.m. Aug. 25.
• Bellarmine men’s soccer will host Evansville at 7 p.m. Thursday. Then, the Knights will visit Northern Kentucky at 7:30 p.m. Aug. 25.
• Bellarmine women’s soccer will host Asbury at 3 p.m. Aug. 25.

Know of a story you think should be included in our weekly Starting 5 notebook? Send your idea to sports reporter Prince James Story at pstory@gannett.com for consideration. You can follow him on X at @PrinceJStory.