Keynote address: Asian Racing Federation chairman Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges on the ARC platform in Melbourne. Photo courtesy of Racing Photos
‘We must embrace change to meet nine key challenges’
Hong Kong Jockey Club
In a scene-setting opening address at the 39th Asian Racing Conference in Melbourne on Wednesday [Feb 15], Asian Racing Federation (ARF) chairman Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges encouraged racing leaders to embrace change and collaborate more in the face of global challenges.
Speaking to an audience of more than 700 delegates from 35 countries, Hong Kong Jockey Club chief executive Engelbrecht-Bresges delivered an address titled ‘The Landscape’.
He said: “As racing’s leaders, we must embrace change and we have to drive necessary changes more rapidly. We have to collaborate more to drive these changes from sharing our experiences to joint initiatives.
Opening ceremony: more than 700 delegates from 35 countries are attending the 39th Asian Racing Conference in Melbourne. Photo courtesy of Racing PhotosOpening ceremony: more than 700 delegates from 35 countries are attending the 39th Asian Racing Conference in Melbourne. Photo courtesy of Racing Photos“Most of the challenges we face can only be solved when we work together in a more strategic way and overcome the fragmented way of how racing is run, being at national, regional and global levels.”
Calling for joint efforts to uphold global standards in rules and practices to safeguard integrity, Engelbrecht-Bresges said collaboration was needed to fight the illegal betting market; to brand racing as a sport of the highest integrity – and not only wagering.
He also said racing needs more cohesive efforts to better market the sport and to expand audiences. This could be done through the creation of a new technology platform to enable racing to grow in the international wagering business via global simulcasts and the World Pool.
Engelbrecht-Bresges said combined efforts were required to build a technology platform to enable racing to embrace Web 3.0 development and to ensure relevance to Gen Z consumers, while seeking ways to make racing more sustainable and reach Carbon Zero 2040 to ensure the long-term future of the sport.
Pointing to key performance indicators such as rising average yearling sales prices, betting turnover and prize money increases, Engelbrecht-Bresges said racing “has successfully emerged from the Covid crisis and has shown great agility and resilience.”
“However, beyond these figures, racing faces significant global challenges going forward which, in my view, cannot be solved without fundamental changes and strengthening of collaboration and joint efforts to address these challenges,” he said.
Engelbrecht-Bresges said racing faced nine key challenges – industry fragmentation, integrity, illegal and off-shore betting operators, social acceptability, competition from other sports, an ageing customer base and engaging Gen Y and Z, branding racing as a global sport, sustainability and human resources.
Engelbrecht-Bresges asked “whether racing can move on to solve its structural problems and final strategic solutions to ensure its long-term viability” while also addressing climate change – but he remains optimistic over the sport’s future.
He added: “While I have outlined what our key challenges are – which seem to be daunting – but in light of the great resilience and innovation racing has shown during the pandemic, I see significant opportunities by embracing challenges and changes.”
In the second session of the conference business programme, titled ‘The Wager’, Engelbrecht-Bresges pointed to a desired further advance of World Pool growth against a backdrop of a widening gap between sports and racing betting – and disturbing illegal betting growth at almost twice the rate of the legal market between 2019 and 2021.
“Global liquidity is the key for all pari-mutuel operators and in turn for racing industry revenue and updating racing wagering, integration protocols for a global platform is imperative,” Engelbrecht-Bresges said.
Charles Dickens’ Kenilworth Gallop Pictures And Comment
The above and below images of the talented Charles Dickens after his gallop on Saturday at Hollywoodbets Kenilworth were posted on Bass Racing Stable’s facebook page.
‘The Special One’ ran an incredible race to finish second in the L’Ormarins King’s Plate in his last start and will be primed to follow up with a strong effort against his own age group in the Splashout Cape Derby Gr1 on Saturday 25 February.
Trainer Bass Racing Stables commented on his gallop “he worked exceptionally well with two companions and will likely have one or two more pieces of strong work ahead of the big day. He is in great shape and looks well”
The SplashOut Cape Town Seafood and Jazz Racing Festival returns to Hollywoodbets Kenilworth on Saturday 25 Feb ending the summer season off with a splash.
The jazzy affair welcomes guests and racing enthusiasts to a Derby Day filled with stellar racing, live jazz entertainment, gin bars and a gastronomic feast of seafood and sushi.
Admission is free with cash prize giveaways, a kids zone and special guest performance by Craig Lucas.
Visit www.caperacing.co.za for more info. Destination Cape Racing – You’ve arrived
Fundi Sithebe Visits The Griffiths/De Kock Racing Stables
While in Melbourne to attend the Asian Racing Conference, 4Racing CEO Fundi Sithebe this morning had the opportunity to visit the Griffiths De Kock Racing stables at Cranbourne Training Complex and to meet with trainers Robbie Griffiths and Mathew De Kock, who are flying the SA flag high Down Under.
Horses with SA-based owners in the stable include a Justify filly owned by Mary Slack and Mike De Kock, Drakenstein Stud’s Frankel filly Let’sbefrankbaby, who won third time out (and first time out as a three-year-old) back in August, and Arun Chadha and Warne Rippon’s ASSM Syndicate’s Catch Twentytwo, well know to South Africans as the winner of the Dingaans and Tony Ruffel Stakes.
Catch Twentytwo ran three times in England and managed a fourth place finish in a Listed event at Windsor.
He has run twice in Australia for Griffiths and De Kock, both over 1400m at Flemington and Sandown respectively and both times under Callan Murray, but he was unplaced in both starts.
He will be competing in this Saturday’s Black Caviar Lightning Race Day, which is the first race day at Flemington included on the World Pool calendar.
A Special Day For Ashburton Trainer Gary Rich
Gary Rich won the fifth race on the Hollywoodbets Greyville poly today just an hour after he had become a grandfather.Gary’s daughter and son-in-law Tessa and Mike Zietsman had earlier welcomed into the world their baby boy ‘Zak”.The name of the winning horse was Majestic Power.The Just As Well gelding stayed on late to win by quarter of a length.Zak was a week overdue but finally arrived and Gary quipped he had also run on well.Tessa is assistant trainer to Kumaran Naidoo.Julie Guthrie, a former trainer colleague of Gary’s at Ashburton, is a member of the syndicate of owners.Gary will soon be making the compulsory move to Summerveld after the recent announcement of the closure of Ashburton.
Warren Kennedy Is Associated With New Zealand’s Most Exciting Filly
Kennedy landed a second Grade 2 on the Roger James and Robert Wellwood-trained three-year-old filly Prowess (Proisir) over the weekend and the big question now is whether she will run in the country’s biggest race, the Grade 1 New Zealand Derby, and thus have the clash the public crave with the three-year-old gelding Sharp ‘N’ Smart (Redwood).
Both horses ran at Te Rapa on Saturday.
The classic Derby clash New Zealand punters are craving is anything but certain even though the two main players were stunning in different ways at Te Rapa on Saturday, wrote Michael Guerin in the New Zealand Herald.
First, the filly Prowess streeted her rivals in the $140,000 Ellis Classic, but just over an hour later, Sharp ‘N’ Smart was even more impressive, beating some of our best older weight-for-age horses over 2000m in the $450,000 Herbie Dyke Stakes.
It was a race he had no right to win, second up after a gutbuster at Trentham and then trapped three wide for half the race, but the big gelding showed special qualities to fight off Campionessa, with fellow three-year-old Wild Night grinding his way past Defibrillate into third.
That may see Wild Night bypass the $1 million Derby back at Te Rapa but it is definitely the next and main aim for Sharp ‘N’ Smart, who already has a Group 1 Penfolds Victoria Derby second at Flemington to his credit.
His win was testament not only to his toughness but also to that of jockey Ryan Elliot, who was on tiny rations all week to make the 54kg and pay back trainer Graeme Rogerson, one of his biggest supporters.
Sharp ‘N’ Smart finished the day as the $2.60 favourite for the Derby, with Prowess the only other chance in single figures at $3.80 after she blew away moderate filly rivals in the Ellis Classic.
Rider Warren Kennedy used her early speed to be outside the leader and then one-one, and she won so easily, she could have put 10 lengths on her rivals had she been asked.
While co-trainer Roger James is adamant Prowess will cope with the extra 400m of a Derby, he warns punters it is not certain Prowess will return to Te Rapa in three weeks.
“There is a good chance she will be there but that is not set in stone,” says James, who trains with Robert Wellwood. “She has some really good options in Australia that could well culminate in the ATC Oaks, so we will sit down and look at those two paths this week.
“We will also see how she comes through and then see how the others like Rogey’s horse [Sharp ‘N’ Smart] also come through their races and we still have the Avondale Guineas horses racing next Saturday.”
If Prowess skips the Derby to chase Australian riches, Sharp ‘N’ Smart will be odds-on for the classic.
There was a blanket finish in the last race on the Hollywoodbets Greyville poly on Monday won by the Gareth van Zyl-trained Iron Bark ridden by Athandiwe Mgudlwa (Candiese Lenferna).
Veale and De Melo Doubles
Sean Veale spoke of his gratitude to Dennis and Gill Drier at Hollywoodbets Greyville today after he had clinched his meeting double on the Drier-trained Wylie Hall gelding Hippocrates.
Drier announced his retirement yesterday and Veale said he was looking forward to continuing the role as stable jockey under Stuart Ferrie.
Keagan de Melo was the only other rider to score a double at the meeting and is still on track to reach 300 wins for the season.
He is now on 168 wins at a strike rate of 21.32%.
Veale is on 38 wins at 13.24%.
The above picture gives a clue to the answer (Sporting Post).
Today’s Question
Have any jockeys this century had their first career Grade 1 wins in the Met?
Turffontein Standside Fields, Thursday, CLICK HERE
NB Please wait a few seconds for fields to appear.
JP van der Merwe landed his first career Grade 1 on the Alec Laird-trained Smart Call in the 2016 Met. (Liesl King).
