SUN: Maryland landed elite equestrian event; vendors, winners left unpaid

Baltimore — Maryland fought to bring a prestigious annual equestrian competition — the 5 Star at Fair Hill — to the state in 2021. But in the months after last year’s event, vendors and prize winners were still waiting for payment, and some vendors have yet to be fully compensated, according to a budget document and three officials familiar with the invoices.

The debt was incurred by the Sport and Entertainment Corporation of Maryland, a state-created nonprofit organization that last October operated the 5 Star, which typically includes Olympic-level riders and offers hundreds of thousands of dollars in prize money. In December, Terry Hasseltine, the corporation’s president and chairman, abruptly left his position.

In all, the overdue bills incurred by the corporation — including for 5 Star vendors and expenses tied to a second event, the Maryland Cycling Classic in Baltimore in September — totaled at least $1.5 million, according to the officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity to provide unofficial responses. The total amount was recently included in Gov. Wes Moore’s 2027 fiscal supplemental appropriation to provide funds for the 5 Star and the cycling classic.

The three officials confirmed to The Baltimore Sun that the money is to pay past expenses. One said the funds are still waiting to be distributed, but that the prize money for horse owners and some of the vendors has already been paid from existing resources.

Read the full article on The Baltimore Sun’s website.