Have horse will travel - incentives to race in 2023
Article by Lissa Oliver
Fitness is one thing, but placing horses in suitable races to provide the best opportunity for them is quite possibly the trickiest part of a trainer’s role. It can be hard enough to search our own racing calendar for suitable races, and yet, delving further into international calendars could well pay dividends, if not in prize money then in adding valuable black type. Despite problems with travel, the racing world grows ever smaller, and it can certainly pay to shop around and look further afield. Many racecourses will offer travel incentives to encourage international participation, and the VIP experience for visiting owners will provide a lasting memory.
France
Close to home and a regular destination for most European trainers, prize money in France rose to €278 million last year, up on 2021 by €30 million (+12%) and on 2019 by €20 million (7.75%). The 2023 France Galop budget includes a €10 million increase in prize money, with an objective to stimulate the number of young horses in training in France.
As a result, 19 races at Parisian racecourses will see their total prize money raised to €50,000, paid out to the first seven finishers. The winner will earn €25,000, increased by 80% for two-year-olds if the winner is eligible for the owner's premium. The total sum of earnings to the winner could be €45,000. The selected 19 races take place throughout the year and include various distances. France Galop describes them as the most sought-after and competitive events for unraced horses in the French programme, with a consistent track record of producing a number of Group horses.
In the French provinces, two races for unraced horses have been selected to be included in this scheme. They are the Prix du Four à Chaux and the Prix Didier Vezia, which will be run in September at Bordeaux. Each race will offer a total prize money of €35,000; and the winner will earn €31,500 if eligible for the owner's premium.
The increase in prize money has also been spread throughout maiden races, and races for unraced horses, across all of France.
The new Arqana Series is also of interest to those racing in France - the sales company offering a series of races worth €1.2m (£1.06m), open only to the yearlings and foals offered at Arqana Sales in 2022 and the two-year-olds offered at the forthcoming Arqana May Breeze Up. The Arqana Series will consist of five races, for two-year-olds and three-year-olds (the latter run in 2024) on a Thursday evening during the prestigious Deauville meeting and on the Saturday of the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe weekend. Each race of the Arqana Series will reward both owners and vendors.
The juvenile races at Deauville will be run over 1400m (7f) for unraced horses and 1200m (6f) conditions, with a 2000m (10f) race in 2024 for three-year-olds. At ParisLongchamp, the two-year-old race will be a conditions race over 1600m (8f).
Of course, all races in France already carry a lucrative system of owners’ premiums on top of prize money. Two-year-olds and three-year-olds win an additional 80%, four and five-year-olds win an additional 55%, and six-year-olds and up receive an additional 45%. An additional 35% is paid to winners of Gp.1 races, whatever their age.
Germany
Deutsches Derby
Germany is still not yet back to the level of pre-Covid 2019, but significantly more prize money and bonuses were paid out in 2022 than in 2021 [€12.39m (£10.95m)], which will rise to €13m (£11.47m) in 2023. An increase of €2.15m (£1.90m) was recorded in prize money, and the average race value is higher than in previous years at €12,039/£10,651. The Deutsches Derby 2023 will be worth €650,000/£574,967, the Preis der Diana €500,000/£442,290, and the Grosser Preis von Baden worth €400,000/£ 353,985.
At smaller German tracks, the Harzburg meeting, 22–30 July, has significantly increased prize money for 2023, and the showcase handicaps carry €17,500/£15,475. The highlight of the meeting is the BBAG Auction Race worth €37,000/£32,683. "We want to support basic racing in particular," explains Racing Club President Stephan Ahrens, "because the costs of keeping horses have risen enormously. That is why we have increased the race values by up to 25%.”
Scandinavia
Further afield for some, the full potential of Scandinavia has yet to be tapped, particularly the prize money on offer at Bro Park in Sweden. Bro Park covers 500 acres and has permanent stabling and training facilities, able to accommodate a further 100 horses on race days. The facilities provide the best possible environment for horses and those working with them. It is just over 30 minutes from the centre of Stockholm by car and a similar distance from Arlanda Airport.
Bro Park
Foreign raiders might be tempted by Sweden’s major race, the 2400m (12f) Gr3 Stockholm Cup for three-year-olds and up, at Bro Park on Sunday, 17 September—worth €125,825/£111,103. Earlier, on 11 June at Bro Park is the Gp.3 Stockholm Stora Pris, 1750m (8 1/2f) for three-year-olds and up— worth €89,882/£79,357. The Stockholm Cup card includes Sweden's most important two-year-old race, the 1400m (7f) Appel Au Maitre Svealandlöpning—worth €23,108/£20,424—and won by British trainer Archie Watson last year, who completed a double on the day.
On dirt, for three-year-olds and up, Jägersro hosts the 1750m (8 1/2f) Listed Pramms Memorial—worth €89,882/£79,357—21 May; the 2400m (12f) Svensk Derby—worth €223,869/£197,629,—16 July; and the €71,925/£63,509 Zawawi Cup over 1200m (6f), 16 July. Both Bro Park and Jägersro offer plenty of other opportunities at distances of 1200m (6f) up to 2400m (12f) with values ranging from €26,971/£23,809 up to €59,339/£52,386.
In Norway, the 2400m (12f) Norsk Derby at Ovrevoll 20 August has a total value of €108,662/£96,067; and the 2400m (12f) Gp.3 Oslo Cup 15 June is worth €23,721/£20,973 to the winner. On 21 August, the Gp.3 Marit Sveaas Minnelop is run at Ovrevoll over 1800m (9f), carrying a first prize of €66,406/£58,724.
Let’s not forget Denmark, where the Gp.3 Scandinavian Open Championship for three-year-olds and up, over 2400m (12f) at Klampenborg on 27 May, is worth €57,545/£50,903, and a first prize of €31,967/£28,280.
Spain
While there may not be high levels of prize money to chase on a regular basis in Spain, it is worth noting the major prizes in the Spanish calendar. The Listed Gran Premio de Madrid over 2500m (12 1/2f) at the end of June, for three-year-olds and up, is the major summer highlight, worth €68,000/£60,068 (€40,000/£35,330 to the winner; €16,000/£14,132 to the second; €8,000/£7,065 to the third; and €4,000/£3,532 to the fourth).
In 2023, it will be run on Saturday, 24 June and is supported on the card by the Premio Baldoria for three-year-olds and older fillies and mares: over 1600m (8f), worth €15,000/£13,247 to the winner; €6,000/£5,299 to the second; €3,000/£2,649 to the third; and €1,500/£1,324 to the fourth.
August at San Sebastián sees the 1500m (7 1/2f) Premio Santander Cup (Criterium International) for two-year-olds, with prize money of €40,800/£36,018. The €59,500/£52,532 Gran Premio Copa De Oro De San Sebastián, over 2400m for three-year-olds and up, is the meeting highlight, worth €35,000/£30,900 to the winner; in addition to an impressive gold cup, €14,000/£12,360 goes to the second, €7,000/£6,180 to the third and €3,500/£3,090 to the fourth. On the supporting card is the Gran Premio Turismo Gobierno Vasco, 1600m (8f) for three-year-olds and up with a total prize of €40,800/£36,018.
On Sunday, 15 October, the highlight of the Spanish season will be Champions Day, with a card that includes the Gran Premio Memorial Duque de Toledo over 2400m (12f) for three-year-olds and up, with a value of €68,000/£60,068 (€40,000/£35,330 to the winner, €16,000/£14,132 to the second, €8,000/£7,065 to the third and €4,000/£3,532 to the fourth). Also run on the day is the Gran Premio Ruban over 1200m (6f) worth €40,800/£36,018, with the winner taking home €24,000/£21,191, down to €2,400/£2,119 for fourth. A strong supporting card boasts lucrative added premiums of €5,000 for Spanish-breds.
Belgium
There are also opportunities for an average rated horse closer to home for some, in Belgium. As in Spain, the prize money might not be eye-catching, but neither is the competitiveness in comparison to similar races at home. The showpiece is the Prix Prince Rose, a National Listed Race over 2100m (10 1/2f) run at Ostend on Monday, 7 August with total prize money of €12,800/£11,304, with €8,000/£7,065 to the winner. The Prix Prince Rose is open to three-year-olds and older who have never been placed in the first five of a Pattern race.
Ostend also hosts three interesting conditions races in July and August: the Miler Cup, 1600m (8f); the Prijs Half Oogst and BFG Galop, 1800m (9f); and the Prijs BFG and Nymphenburger, 2200m (11f)—each with a total prize money of €8,000/£7,065, with €5,000/£4,416 for the winner. They are for four-year-olds and older without a handicap value or a value equal or lower than 30kg (66 lbs). Penalties for prize money received for wins and places since 1 July 2023 are 1kg per €1,000. There is also the UAE Sprint Cup Handicap over 1000m (5f) in August for four-year-olds and older with a handicap value equal or lower than 30kg (66 lbs). See the complete list of races and conditions here: www.bgalopf.be/Meetings.htm
Britain
In Britain, the BHA, Darley and Juddmonte have come together to sponsor a high-value developmental races series of 60 races, also supported in funding by host racecourses, offering increased prize money to horses at the start of their career. As with the French developmental programme, the hope is that they will be retained to race in Britain going forward. The BHA hopes to expand on the idea of increasing the values of Flat maidens and novice races in 2024 and long-term.
There will be 20 two-year-old restricted maiden and novice races worth €33,975/£30,000, supported by Juddmonte; 21 two-year-old open maiden and novice races worth €33,975/£30,000, supported by the BHA Development Fund; and 22 three-year-old and up open maiden and novice races worth €33,975–€56,626 (£30,000–£50,000), supported by Darley and the BHA Development Fund. The €56,626/£50,000 races will be run over longer distances to support middle-distance and staying horses.
Elsewhere in Britain, Newbury, having been infamously boycotted by trainers for one of its flat races last year, will see a 16% prize money increase this year, taking overall levels at the track to just over €6.79m/£6m. Newbury will host six novice and maiden races during the Flat season with prize money of €33,975 up to €56,626 (£30,000–£50,000).
The Racing League also returns for 2023, in which seven teams compete in 42 races over six meetings for over €2.2m/£2m prize money. The meetings for 2023 are Yarmouth 27 July, Chepstow 10 August, Windsor 17 August, Newcastle 31 August, Wolverhampton 7 September and Southwell 13 September. All races are handicaps with a range of ratings bands and distances, with normal BHA distribution for race prize money.
As with Arqana, British racing is boosted by the sponsorship of sales company Tattersalls, targeting yearlings purchased at the Tattersalls Somerville Yearling Sale, who will be eligible for the 1200m (6f) €112,826/£100,000 Tattersalls Somerville Auction Stakes run at Newmarket 26 August, as well as the 1200m (6f) €169,242/£150,000 Tattersalls October Auction Stakes, Newmarket 5 October.
Charlie Appleby-trained Regal Honour broke his maiden in the 2022 Stephen Rowley Remembered Novice Stakes at Newmarket to collect the 312th £20,000 Tattersalls October Book 1 Bonus.
The Goffs UK Harry Beeby Premier Yearling Stakes, 1200m (6f) on 24 August at York carries a guaranteed minimum value of €394,092/£350,000, for two-years-olds sold at the 2022 Doncaster Premier Yearling Sale.
Tattersalls also offer the €22,684/£20,000 Tattersalls October Book 1 Bonus Scheme for 2023. Participating owners will receive a €22,684/£20,000 bonus if their 2022 October Book 1 purchase wins a Class 2, 3 or 4 two-year-old maiden or novice race in Britain between 1 April and 11 November 2023, or any 'Open' two-year-old maiden run in Ireland between 25 March and 5 November 2023. The cost to enter the €22,684/£20,000 Tattersalls October ‘Book 1 Bonus’ Scheme is €1,928/£1,700, and there are over 300 qualifying British and Irish two-year-old maiden and novice races. All yearlings sold, bought in or failing to meet their reserve at Book 1 of the 2022 Tattersalls October Yearling Sale are eligible.
Ireland
Tattersalls are also major sponsors in Ireland, with the Tattersalls Ireland Super Auction Sale Stakes of €300,000/£265,889, worth €150,000/£132,942 to the winner and prize money of at least €5,000/£4,431 down to 10th. Over 1200m (6f) at the Curragh, it is of course limited to those yearlings sold at the Tattersalls Ireland September Yearling Sale and the Tattersalls Ireland Sapphire Sale in November 2022.
Tattersalls also continues to support the first two Irish Classics and Gp.1 Tattersalls Gold, as well as enhanced owners’ and trainers’ facilities at the Curragh. The Irish 1000 Guineas and Irish 2000 Guineas will each have prize money of €500,000/£443,081, while the Tattersalls Gold Cup will increase in value to €450,000/£398,754.
Goffs also continue to be major sponsors in Ireland, supporting premier National Hunt and Flat races. The Goffs Sportsman Challenge Day at Naas, 14 September 2023, will be a mid-week all juvenile card featuring the 1200m (6f) €100,000/£88,653 Goffs Sportsman’s Challenge, a two-year-old race exclusive to yearlings purchased at the Goffs Sportsman’s Sale. Prize money also goes to the first 10 finishers.
Europe’s richest two-year-old race, the 1400m (7f) Goffs Million, run at the Curragh 23 September 2023, is for graduates of the Goffs Orby Sale (2022) and is worth €500,000/£443,081 to the winner, down to €10,000/£8,869 for 10th.
Horse Racing Ireland (HRI) saw a number of restorations to prize money levels last year and an increase in funding for the IRE Incentive Scheme for breeders, which grew from €1.1m (£0.97m) paid out in 2021 as vouchers to be spent on Irish-bred horses at Irish sales, to €1.3m (£1.14m) last year. It will again provide €1.3m (£1.14m) in vouchers for 2023.
HRI’s commitment to ensuring the quality of racing is also extended to grassroots level, with a targeted increase of €1.7m (£1.5m) to prize money levels, bringing 2023 to €68.6m (+2.5%) (£60.58m).
“Prize money is a key enabler in building and maintaining the number of quality horses in training in Ireland,” says Suzanne Eade, chief executive of HRI. “Approximately 70% of horses competing [in Ireland] receive some prize money, so it is important that we prioritise its growth…in order to sustain the significant rural jobs created by the industry.”
European Breeders’ Fund
Throughout Europe, the European Breeders Fund (EBF), with national representation in Britain, Ireland, France, Germany, Italy and Switzerland, continues to be one of the largest sponsors of races. Only the progeny of EBF registered stallions and horses nominated to the EBF can enter these races, but of course they are free to run in any EBF race throughout Europe.
The European Breeders’ Fund celebrates its 40 th year of operation in 2023 and in that time has contributed over €130m to prize money throughout Europe. The emphasis is on the two-year-old programme and fillies races, and there are valuable opportunities to be found. The EBF regularly reviews where the funds are best directed and is a vital support to both racing and bloodstock industries.
Highlights of the EBF support in 2023:
Irish EBF Ballyhane Stakes €200,000 minimum at Naas, August
British EBF 2yo series £100,000 finals at Goodwood and York, September and October
Criterium FEE €130,000 Deauville, August
Italy is recovering from difficult times and this season there will be four EBF-sponsored races with an added €2,000/£1,766 to the winner if EBF qualified.
In France, the EBF (FEE) will pay out over €1m into prize money, with over €200,000 in premiums for fillies Listed Races, and over €500,000 for two and three-year-old maidens, debutants and conditions races in both Paris and the regions.
The British EBF will in 2023 invest around €2.27m (£2m) for both Flat and National Hunt and the Irish EBF current investment has increased from €2.6m (£2.25m) to €2.7m (£2.38m), making Irish Stallion Farms EBF the largest sponsor of racing in Ireland. This year all Listed Fillies races in Ireland will be sponsored by Irish EBF and will run for a minimum of €50,000/£44,000 and all other Listed races will run for a minimum of €40,000/£35,000. Highlights include the 26-race Median Sires Series, each worth a minimum €25,000/£22,000, for horses by a sire with a median fee of €75,000/£66,045 or less. The €200,000/£177,506 Irish EBF Ballyhane Stakes has the same conditions and is the showcase, run over 1000m (5f) at Naas 7 August. The 24-race Irish EBF Auction Series for two-year-olds worth a minimum €20,000/£17,750 each has two finals, worth €120,000/£10,5672. Horses must have been bought at auction for €72,000/£63,403 or less.
*Euros converted to sterling at XE rate 03/03/2023
Racing in Belgium
Words - Dr. Paull Khan
Belgium's Desert Orchid and French-trained Taupin Rochelais sail over the 'world's biggest water jump.' Credit: Photography Piet Eggermont Belgium.
The jumps track at the pristine little Flemish town of Waregem might just boast the shortest finishing straight in the world—the winning post being a matter of yards from the final bend. It is, however, the home of far and away the most valuable race in Belgium. The Grand Steeple-Chase of Flanders boasts a purse of €80,000 (€100,000 pre-COVID) and, August 30th will see the 154th renewal of this venerable 4,600-metre event.
“The race is part of the Crystal Cup,” explains course commentator Nicky de Frene, “thanks to the Gaverbeek—the largest water jump in the world at 6.5 metres—and the famous Irish Bank, which give this Steeple-Chase a little touch of a cross-country race. It’s recently attracted the attention of David Pipe and Jamie Snowden, but I fear that Brexit wasn’t a good thing for Waregem because of the extra travel costs.”
Nowadays, the race is virtually the preserve of French connections (Although Germany can boast a couple of second places in recent years; and Kildagin did win it for Britain back in 1975).
Nicky de Frene is in no doubt about its most remarkable winner. “In the last decade, we have seen the domination of the French trainer Patrice Quinton, who won the race 10 times in a row! That happened with five different horses, one of which was Taupin Rochelais, the near-white grey who won it four times running. At the time of his last victory, in 2018, he had to carry 76kg, (12 stone) and he beat a top-class horse from champion trainer Guillaume Macaire. That day, Waregem witnessed the highest-rated performance in its history.”
“We’re not a racing nation…” continues de Frene, warming to his theme, “but he’s our version of Desert Orchid! I don’t know of a top handicap in the world with a winner of four successive renewals. Even Makybe Diva has just three Melbourne Cups; Red Rum, three Grand Nationals. So Taupin Rochelais deserves, in my opinion, eternal fame.”
However, the Grand Steeple Chase of Flanders is one of just four Belgian jumps races, all run on a single day at Waregem. Flat racing, by contrast, is held year-round.
Belgian racing is, in fact, amongst the most open in the world. All of its races, including handicaps, are open to horses trained in all recognised nations. As long as an entry has a handicap mark in its home country, it will be assigned a mark in Belgium, which uses the same scale as in France.
Some 18% of last year’s runners were foreign-trained—the great majority from Germany, some from Holland and a smattering from France. Gone are the days when British trainers like Michael Jarvis made regular raids over to the seaside resort track at Ostend. This compares starkly with the number of foreign sorties made by Belgian-trained horses, which are almost as likely to run outside Belgium as within it.
Marcel De Bruyne, Belgium’s representative on the EMHF and director of the Belgian Galop Federation, explains the simple truth: “French racetracks are nearby, and the prize money at those favoured by Belgian trainers is more than double ours.”
Average prize money last year was some €4,700 per race, peaking at €12,800 for Ostend’s Grand Prix de Prince Rose, the country’s most prestigious flat race. It is named after the most celebrated Belgian-trained thoroughbred who ran third in the ‘Arc,’ went on to win the Gp. 1 Prix du President at Saint Cloud and become an important stallion—leading sire in France in 1946 and great grand-sire of Secretariat.
Neither can the pool of home-trained horses be said to be extensive, having fallen from 348 pre-COVID to just 318 last year. However, the fixture list which these horses are asked to sustain runs to just 30 meetings and 150 races; and this controlled offering certainly pays dividends as regards competitiveness. Field sizes would be the envy of many top-tier racing nations: 10.8 at Ostende, 10.6 at Waregem and 9.4 at Mons.
Let’s take a look at the country’s three racecourses:
Mons: Two thirds of Belgium’s races are run at Mons, on the same type of All Weather track as can be found at Chantilly and Deauville, some 50km southwest of Brussels near the French border. A left-handed track of 1,200 metres’ circumference which favours front runners, particularly in the sprints, Mons’ Hippodrome de Wallonie races fortnightly from mid-September to the end of April, with a limited menu of five distances: 950m, 1,500m, 2,100m, 2,300m and 2,850m.
Wellington Racecourse at Ostend: Belgium’s high-summer track, racing on turf every Monday, July through August. With a slight incline to the finish, races cover a full range of distances from 1,000m to 4,000m, either on the track’s 1,400m right-handed oval or its 1,000m straight.
Waregem: Not far from Ghent, Waregem now offers four turf flat meetings in May and June, including the St Leger over 2,700m, to add to its flagship jumps day.
Nearly half the horses in training in Belgium are owner-trained. There are 18 professional trainers in the country. Jockeys are also in short supply: just 14 professional riders (with a further seven gentleman riders and seven lady riders.
The long-term sustainability of thoroughbred breeding in the country is, however, a concern for De Bruyne. The country produced just 24 foals last year. “Belgian-bred thoroughbreds are becoming an endangered species because owners prefer to buy race-ready horses; and Belgian breeders often breed in France to be eligible for French breeders’ and owners’ premiums.”
The backdrop against which Belgian racing is attempting to thrive is one of serious under-funding. It's only betting-based income stems from the very modest sums that are wagered by racegoers at its three courses and from bets placed into the French betting operator; PMU’s pools on 100 or so qualifying flat races—the so-called ‘Premium’ races. It is therefore heavily dependent upon this latter income stream. The sport derives no benefit whatsoever from the great bulk of relevant wagering—neither from bets placed by Belgian punters off-course (either in the 3,500 retail outlets or online)—whether on Belgian races or otherwise, nor by punters in other countries betting online on Belgian races (outside the PMU system).
Baron Philippe Casier—former president of the Belgian Jockey Club and a long-time advocate of statutory funding for the sport from betting thereon—describes two recent body-blows to this ambition. “Last year, a law introduced two years earlier, which required betting operators licensed in the country to enter into a funding agreement with racecourses, and which covered betting on both foreign and domestic races, was repealed before a single Euro had been handed over. And in 2018, a tripartite agreement that the Belgian tracks had struck with the PMU and international betting operators, through which common pool betting on the French system had, for a few years, resulted in healthy income for them, also ended.”
So, despite the numerous European Commission precedents, which have established the validity of statutory funding, there seems to be no current appetite for this within the Belgian national government, of which betting is a competency. Racing therefore must look to the largesse of regional governments. The Walloon region has been persuaded of the benefits of supporting this rural industry, and grants Mons a yearly operational subsidy. Hopes in Flanders, where there is currently no such support and into which Ostend and Waregem fall, rest with a proposal to establish a similar subsidy that is funded by raising the tax rate on online bets from 11% to the 15% that already applies to other betting. Despite these impediments, optimism remains, and perhaps we should leave the last reflections to Guy Heymans, Belgium’s chair of the European Trainers Federation: “Because of the repression we had in Belgian racing, a lot of owners stopped owning racehorses. And lots of those who kept on started training their horses themselves. That’s why we have a lot of owner/trainers in Belgium and why there are only a few professional trainers left”.
Racing in Belgium is no longer on a regular basis, as it used to be—there is now a race meeting only approximately every fortnight. But Ostend and Waregem are becoming very popular with the general public, with thousands of spectators at those meetings. For an owner it’s a real pleasure to win a race at one of these meetings with such crowds and all that cheering!
“Belgium is a very interesting place to have horses in training. First of all there is the geographical location: we have easy access to a lot of French and German racetracks (e.g., Paris within only three hours’ drive). Secondly, the trainers have excellent facilities—some of them private, others based on the racetrack in Mons.
Furthermore, the cost of putting a horse in training is cheaper than in our neighbouring countries. That makes it an interesting proposition for foreign owners to put horses into pre-training with a Belgian trainer.
“Belgian racing has been evolving positively over recent years. We hope that this trend will continue in such a way that new and old owners will find their way to the sport.”
News from the EMHF - the pandemic’s effects on Europe’s smaller racing nations and their trainers
By Dr. Paull Khan
There is no racing nation that has escaped the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. The impact on the major racing powers, in Europe and beyond, has been well chronicled. Racing industries in France, Great Britain and Ireland have all taken a significant financial hit with the period of forced inactivity. But what has been the experience of the smaller countries, with lesser financial resources with which to buffer themselves? Here we look at the situation in six countries—Belgium, Greece, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland and Slovakia—to try to get a sense of what the coronavirus crisis has meant for their racing generally and their trainers in particular. And what we see is a highly variable picture; while for some the impact—at least to date—has been mild, and there is confidence around the long-term prospects for the sport. For others, it has threatened the very existence of horseracing in the country.
The six countries between them boast just 228 trainers: 135 professionals and 93 amateurs. In several cases, the number of horses in the entire country falls short of those in a single large yard in Britain, France or Ireland. They average fewer than 10 horses in training each.
The importance of international competition is noteworthy. Of our six countries, only Greece operates pretty much as ‘an island’, with Greek-trained horses making few forays abroad, and no foreign-trained raiders entering its races. The rest are not self-sufficient. They rely on (i) races in neighbouring countries in which their horses can take part and/or (ii) horses from neighbouring countries bolstering the numbers in their own races to provide competitive sport. This is why COVID-related restrictions on international travel have been a key concern.
BELGIUM
Belgium’s three racetracks—at Mons, Ostend and Waregem—normally stage some 170 races per year. The cessation of racing started on March 5th and, at time of writing, a resumption behind closed doors was hoped for at the end of June. It will not be possible to reschedule all the races, and a reduction in opportunities of some 40% is expected.
Belgian trainers already rely, to a large extent, on supplementing race opportunities at home with those abroad—predominantly making raids across their southern border to France—to which over 80% of foreign raiders are directed. France’s closure to foreign runners therefore represented a significant blow.
Some owners transferred their horses to France when French racing resumed ahead of that in Belgium, but the damage was limited to seven horses.
Marcel De Bruyne, racing director at the Belgian Galop Federation, looks forward with optimism for a recovery next year: “I think and surely hope that 2021 will look like 2019, but our industry depends, to the tune of some 85% of revenues, on French premiums, (via the PMU). When they return to operating as in 2019, we will probably too”.
GREECE
Konstantinos Loukopoulos
Racing at Greece’s only racecourse, Markopoulo near Athens, was halted on March 14th and at time of writing it was hoped the cessation would be limited to three months. This crisis has come at a time when the Greek racing industry was pulling itself out of a slump which threatened its closure. A dozen years ago, the number of horses in training servicing racing was buoyant, at 1500. But by 2015 the tally had slumped to a scarcely-viable 250. This figure is critical to Greek racing since it has yet to attract foreign runners and relies entirely on local horses to populate its race fields. By 2019, through concerted efforts, numbers had recovered to 420, and prospects looked good. Konstantinos Loukopoulos is racing manager at Horse Races S.A., the company which holds 20-year pari-mutuel betting rights and the right to organise races in the country. He explains: “Unfortunately, the COVID-19 crisis hit us at the moment of our growth, as more than 170 new horses had come to Greece after our relaunch in 2019; and our newly introduced ratings-based handicapping system had started to work out well”.
“Our original schedule for 2020 was for 360 races (53% more than 2019). However, due to the period of closure, we will lose many races. In order to partly recover the loss, we will provide the option for up to 10 races per fixture, at least for the first month. Our goal is to give as many opportunities as possible to horses to get a run”.
Greece has mirrored the approach of many larger racing nations when determining where the axe of prize money cuts should fall. Those at the bottom end of the scale will escape, while the top races will see cuts of 13%-20%.
“Our races are open to all runners from abroad and we welcome any owner/trainer who wants to come and run in Greece. For our 2000 Guineas, Derby and Oaks there is a provision that the horses must be in Markopoulo 40 days prior to the race. For trainers that want to come for a specific period of time, we have in place incentives; and we can make, also, ad hoc facilitations, covering for example stabling costs.”
How does Loukopoulos view prospects for racing in his country? “We all are in uncharted waters and guessing is risky”, he answers. “I would say that one of the biggest issues that faces all racing industries—and especially the small ones—is the uncertainty that comes with COVID-19. Having said that, our major concern is the impact on the economy and the forecast for a recession of ~10%. Therefore, we may face a pause to the positive trend we created last year. On the other hand, I have to mention that Greek racing is now in better shape than in previous years”.
This is a view shared by Harry Charalambous, chair of the Greek Professional Trainers Association for Racehorses: “It’s been very hard for Greek racing. In 2019 we were shut for five months” (while disputes over administrative power were playing out), “and now we’re three and a half months closed with COVID. But things were going really well early this year, with 10 races and 80-100 runners per meeting, and I think we will get over it pretty quick”.
NETHERLANDS
The Dutch gallop racing sector is, on most measures, the smallest of our six countries. In common with several other European countries, it has but the one remaining racecourse, but what sets it apart is the fact that only 35 gallop races are staged at Duindigt in a normal year. The importance to trainers and owners of race opportunities abroad is as keenly felt in Holland as anywhere.
The situation for its eight professional and 20 amateur trainers could have been described as somewhat precarious even before the ravages of COVID-19. Sad, therefore, that the degree of disruption caused by the virus has been greater here than in most countries. Racing was stopped on March 15th and, as of early June, there is still no clear indication of a resumption date, with local and national governments taking different views as to the risks involved.
Racing at Holland’s sole gallop track at Duindigt.
Camiel Mellegers, racing secretary of the Dutch racing authority Stichting Nederlandse Draf- en Rensport (SNDR), predicts half of this year’s planned races will be run in the remainder of the season (for, as a consequence, half of the prize money). “This is as far as we can tell at the moment. Rescheduling will be a discussion to be had after we have re-started racing and as a result that might change in a positive way”. …
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Max Hennau on life as a trainer in Belgium
Max Hennau used to train between 50 and 60 horses in Belgium. In 1973, he campaigned the colt Commodore to a domestic Triple Crown. Ten years later he handled the Belgium champion Little Vagabond. Bought for 1,000 guineas at Tattersalls in Newmarket, the small horse with a big engine won six races on the bounce at home and ran third in the Prix du Petit Couvert (Gp3) before being sold on to France. “Those were the days…,” he says.
Geir Stabell (European Trainer - issue 19 - Autumn 2007)
Max Hennau, a founding member and current chairman of the European Trainers Federation (ETF), used to train between 50 and 60 horses in Belgium. In 1973, he campaigned the colt Commodore to a domestic Triple Crown.
Ten years later he handled the Belgium champion Little Vagabond. Bought for 1,000 guineas at Tattersalls in Newmarket, the small horse with a big engine won six races on the bounce at home and ran third in the Prix du Petit Couvert (Gp3) before being sold on to France.
“Those were the days…,” he says. Things have changed for Belgian racing. Things have changed for Hennau. Today, he has more committee seats than he has racehorses. What exactly has happened here?
“This will be my last season as a public trainer as I’m going to concentrate on the horses we breed to race,” Max Hennau states as we meet on a rainy day. The weather is quite similar to the atmosphere in this country’s horseracing circles. Sunny days have been hard to come by also in Belgium this summer, and sunny days for racing seem to be a thing of the past. “I will continue working for racing, and hope the sport has a future,” Hennau explains. “For myself, I want to focus on my business. Yes, I regret that I did not make a move abroad 20 years ago though, you see, things were going well for racing here then. One saw little point in moving.”
Little point indeed. Hennau was a top trainer winning most of the big races on a regular basis. During 36 years in the profession, he was never champion trainer, but that was mainly due to numbers, as his arch-rival, Jerome Martens, trained twice as many horses. When discussing the current state of affairs, Hennau backs his views with key figures, and they really do look bleak. From having nearly 60 horses in his care, Hennau is now training just six. Still, his training establishment in Les Isnes and his stud in Temploux, some 5 km away, do not have any empty boxes. One even holds two animals, but since they are sheep it is a social arrangement.
Hennau and his wife Greta have a full day working with horses, so that side of the business not a problem. At their stud, the Haras de l’Escaille, they have 40 horses, including 20 for the famous showjumping breeder Nelson Pessoa, father of the Olympic and World Champion Rodrigo. Pessoa lives nearby, “but I only see him a few times a year and he is not involved in racing,” Hennau explains before he presents a few more of the key figures, figures that quickly tell the story.
“Twenty years ago, Belgian racing employed around 10,000 people. All told, today the sport employs around 500. Fifteen to twenty years ago, we had five racedays a week,” he adds, “and each day with Thoroughbred racing only. Today, we have one raceday per week, and these days are mixed, with four Thoroughbred races and four trotting races.”
If some readers are not too familiar with the English phrase “next to nothing,” they should be by now, as that is the best way to give a brief description of Belgian racing. Hennau is not depressed about this decline, he says, but calls it tiring. How could it not be, to someone who has no plans for giving up? “We still have hopes for the future,” he says and it shows that he means what he says, “but changes must come, if not Thoroughbred racing will be history in my country.” Moving on to what ought to be funding racing - the turnover on the PMU - we are presented with more figures, telling exactly the same tale.
“Twenty years ago, the turnover on a daily Tierce race was equal to 2.5 million euros,” he continues. “Today it is only 25.000 euros. While the bookmakers can afford to give 90% back to the punters, the PMU gives back just 80% and that is not good enough. The solution should be very, very simple; give a better return on the PMU and a bigger slice back to racing. Also, we have a situation where bookmakers can take bets on races abroad, while the PMU cannot. It is an impossible situation. Remember also that bookmakers take bets on racing in France and England, without paying those jurisdictions any money. They pay for live pictures, that’s all. And Belgian racing is losing out.”
So, the bookmakers have seem to have a lot to answer for, in this country where horseracing appears to be on the verge of being wiped out. “I think so,” Hennau says firmly. “Bookmakers have not contributed enough to the sport, and while it may seem that they give punters a good deal, very often they don’t. For example, when they take bets on a race in France, something they do every day, a big outsider may win. We often know that there were only ten winning tickets in France, and for a bookmaker in Belgium the situation can then be that nobody had a winning ticket. Where does the money go? Into the bookmakers’ pockets, of course. If we have a race with no winning tickets on the PMU, punters are not victims of ‘daylight robbery’. There will be a carryover, a jackpot pool the next day, so eventually the money does go back to the punters. Though that slice is way too small,” Hennau concludes, “something that, combined with the bookmakers’ stronghold on the betting market, is creating a double negative effect for the sport.”
Racing jurisdictions lucky enough to still have escaped the jaws of the bookmaking industry should take note. “Oh they are,” Hennau’s wife Greta says quickly, “In France, they are scared, very scared.”
It is a well-known fact that horseracing has been going steeply downhill since Ladbrokes moved in. There may be other factors, and this is a little bit more complicated than just pointing the finger at one big, international company taking a lion’s share of the annual betting turnover in the land. Then again, and quite interestingly, horseracing is doing a lot better in small racing nations like Sweden and Norway, where the climate is not exactly as kind to equestrian sports as it is in Belgium. Surviving despite long spells of ice and snow can only be done with one assurance: a Tote monopoly. While the Swedish Derby was this year worth 53,000 euros to the winner, the Belgian Derby winner earned just 5,000 euros for his classic success!
Hennau touched on the return to punters from PMU betting in Belgium, which is 80%, and ten per cent lower than what bookmakers can afford to offer. Does this really affect the turnover? Yes it does. Look to North America and you will find the answers. At a track like Churchill Downs in Kentucky, the “takeout” on the trifecta is 25%. This has always been considered a bad deal among punters in USA, and it rivals the worst odds of any casino game. Still, when the new ‘Global Trifecta’ was introduced in Europe this year, it was done with a lousy takeout of 29%. Racing authorities are hoping this new international bet will be a success. One can be excused for having doubts about that. Hennau agrees, as he says again and again; “the betting products must be attractive, and give a fair return.”
“Racing in Belgium is also losing its battle with other forms of gambling,” Hennau explains, “mainly the lottery, but also casino betting - though that seems to be a different market, going into a casino is more for the snobs.”
Racecourses are wonderful melting pots. Snobs enjoy it, so called ordinary men and women enjoy it, unemployed enjoy it, girls and boys enjoy it, retired people enjoy it. Some make a living from the sport. Trainers must make a living from it.
“This is why I feel that the ‘ladder’ is totally upside down in our sport,” Hennau says, “the trainers are near the bottom, and very seldom heard, while owners, breeders and members of the Jockey Clubs are high on the ladder. This despite the fact that while trainers have this as a living, owners, Jockey Club members and breeders often have it as a hobby. Even some of the biggest breeders treat racing as a hobby. “
Ten years ago, Hennau decided to try and do something about this, and help trainers across Europe. “We got the idea of a trainers’ federation,” he says, looking at his wife, secretary and translator, Greta. “So, we wrote off to the Jockey Clubs in France, Ireland, England, Sweden, Germany, and Belgium of course, inviting delegates from each country to a meeting in Brussels.” The response was positive from all six countries, but this would cost money. “I managed to get sponsorships,” Hennau tells us. “Some owners helped us financially, in particular Monsieur Bervoets, who owns the excellent Hotel Metropole. He gave us a very good price, so we could arrange the meeting there. We also received some money from the PMU.”
The meeting in Brussels in 1996 went well, and a few months later all nations confirmed their commitments to form the European Trainers’ Federation. This happened in 1997, and the ETF will thus be celebrating ten years in existence when they have their annual meeting in Italy in December. Appropriately, the federation now has ten membership countries, with Spain joining this year.
“You have to bear in mind that everyone involved is doing this as voluntary work,” the chairman points out, “and we are now at a phase where it is important to keep the ETF going, and make it more recognised, better known. We have achieved many things already, as for example the change that a trainer who has held a license in one country for five years can get a license to train in another country. We have a very good relationship with trainers in all countries, and it is in everyone’s interest that we work for Europe offering a level playing field. It is not good that every country has its own set of rules and regulations. There has been some harmonisation but there is some way to go yet and it is my hope, and this is my biggest hope, that all countries in Europe will one day operate under the same set of rules. I think this is the most important, immediate, task for the ETF.”
Hennau steps down as chairman this year, and a new leader will be elected when representatives meet in Italy. “Most countries have had new representatives over the years,” he tells us, “which is probably normal. It is just me and Valfredo Valiani who have been part of the ETF from day one. Maybe we need more stability, and it would be a dream if we could establish an office and afford a full time position for a manager or secretary. Today, that is not financially possible, but the ETF would become so much better known, and so much stronger, if we did have a person who could work for us, travel around and meet people, and so on. Trainers have little time, we are all trying to survive.”
Max Hennau may be about to close the final chapter of his training career, “though,” as he says with a smile, “if I get a phone call from a wealthy owner who wants me, I may reconsider” - but he is not turning his back on horseracing. “I will still be representing the trainers on the Jockey Club board,” he assures us. He has trained somewhere over 500 winners. “Not sure,” he tells us, “but it is minimum of 500.” A considerable number in a land like Belgium, and he has also saddled winners in France.
His son, Elie, is also now a Jockey Club board member, having been a very successful amateur rider with over 100 winners. “He is a good pilot,” his father says, “after all, he rode winners just about everywhere he went, from Epsom Downs to Dubai, St Moritz, USA and Scandinavia…”
His son is no longer riding races but still heavily involved in horseracing. The situation for amateur riders is, of course, closest to his heart.
“Did you know,” Elie asks, “that in England most amateur riders are in fact assistant trainers working full time in racing, while here and in France, that would not be allowed.” We have just been given another example of European racing badly in need of harmonising. “Not sure what you think,” the trainer’s son who is now working in insurance says, “but maybe someone in England ought to look up the word ‘amateur’…”
That is not a word his father, now 60, needs to relate to. Since his time as an ‘officer’ at the Haras du Pin (the National Stud in France), back in 1966, Max Hennau’s approach has clearly been that of a thoroughly professional horseman. Having worked his way up, he is still very much a down-to-earth man. Horses tend to like those. As a youngster, he was selected as the one Belgian student to join the stud and to be an ‘Officer Haras.’
“The system was for eight students each year,” he explains, “six from France, one from Belgium and one from Switzerland, and the selection is made by the Minister of Agriculture.” Did many apply for this position? “I don’t think so,” Hennau says in his typical modest way, not the least bit tempted to exaggerate the importance of being the selected student. “Later on, I went to work for Philippe Lallie in France,” he continues, “we had high class horses like Irish Bold, Pyjama Hunt and Miss Dan at the time.”
Lallie trained over 100 horses, and after learning at this big yard in Chantilly, Hennau returned to Belgium and took out his license. He was just 23 years old, and a few years later he had over 50 horses, training jumpers as well as flat horses. “I had two yards,” he recalls, “in Steerebeck and Groenendael. My two best horses were Commodore, who won the Triple Crown and Little Vagabond. After he ran third in a Group 3 in France, Criquette Head bought Little Vagabond as a lead horse to Sicyos. After that he was sold on to the USA, as sire of Quarter Horses! I had bought him for just 1,000 guineas.”
None of the six horses Hennau trains this year have a value as low as that, or even the equivalent at today’s rates, but none of them have anywhere near the same class. Little Vagabond was a cheap horse, bought by a shrewd man from a small racing nation, named Hennau. He turned the vagabond into a king and a champion. Rather than use the success as a stepping stone for an international career, Hennau stayed at home, and he turned many of his days into voluntary work for Belgian and European horseracing, which he loves and knows so well. Knowledge is power, we are all being told in this world.
“Yes it is,” Hennau says with his typical, quiet smile, “but financial muscle wins when it comes to lobbying and, sadly, horseracing does not have that. I hope one day we will.”