Arroyo, former jockey and steward, joins Illinois Racing Board
Longtime Illinois horse racing official Eddie Arroyo is the newest member of the Illinois Racing Board.
Arroyo, of Wheaton, attended his first meeting last Thursday following his appointment earlier in the week by Gov. J.B. Pritzker. He fills the position left vacant by Leslye Sandberg of Barrington.
Arroyo was the senior state steward who judged races at Chicago-area tracks for decades, in a career that began in 1965 at age 21 as a groom, hot-walker and exercise boy at Sportsman's Park. He started as a jockey the next year and competed in the Midwest, East Coast and Florida circuits until 1978.
In addition to his role as a state steward, Arroyo was a special assistant to then-Arlington Park Chairman Richard Duchossois and general manager of the National Jockey Club at Sportsman's Park. He was inducted into the Chicago Sports Hall of Fame in 1986.