Sunday, March 28, 2010

“Horse racing returns on April 10-11 (Douglas Dispatch)” plus 1 more

“Horse racing returns on April 10-11 (Douglas Dispatch)” plus 1 more

Horse racing returns on April 10-11 (Douglas Dispatch)

Posted: 28 Mar 2010 03:27 PM PDT

Horse racing is returning to the Cochise County Fairgrounds.

Fairgrounds Manager Karen Strongin announced last week enough state funding has been allocated this year allowing her to put on one weekend of horse racing.

Strongin said the dates she was given were April 10-11.

"We plan to have a nice variety of Thoroughbred and Quarter horse races," she said. "The track has been maintained and we're excited to be able to bring the races back to Douglas this year."

The El Moro de Cumpas trials will be held in Douglas that weekend with the finals to be in Sonoita for the second straight year. The Sonoita Derby Trials will also take place in Douglas as will the John Ray Memorial.

Strongin is hoping to have at least 10 races each of the two days.

With the economic situation the way it is there will be no increase in the price of the admission or the cost of the programs.

A St. Patrick's Day dance is scheduled for this Saturday (March 20) from 8 p.m. to midnight. Money raised will be used for the upcoming horse races. There will be door prizes and green beer. Tickets are $5.

"This board is determined to continue onward with all the traditions we have here," Strongin said. "We're like everybody else … in a funding crunch."

Kingman has cancelled its horse races this year and Safford is running just one weekend like Douglas.

Safford will run this March 20-21, then Strongin said there will be no races the next two weekends.

Douglas will have its races; there will be no racing April 17-18 with Sonoita running April 24-25 and May 1-2 which is Kentucky Derby weekend.

Strongin says what happened last year was beyond her on anyone's on the boards control and they would have loved to have had the horse races but with the timing of the state budget cuts that was just not possible.

"Our legislators are working really hard for us," she said. "They don't want to see this go away either. … They just had to wait and see what kind of funding was going to be available for the fourth quarter period.

"We want to race, we will race but we had to wait to hear from the state as to if any funds were going to be available to help us put on these races. We weren't sure if there was going to be any funding at all."

Some of the money from the state is also purse money, Strongin said.

The fairgrounds manager said she met individually which each of our state representatives and explained to them how important this event is for this area and they were able to come through for her this year.

"This event is very important for this area," she said. "People around here really like the races and look forward to us having them each year. … But it takes a lot of money to put this on."

Some horses are already starting to work out on the track. Strongin expects most of them to arrive around April 1.

Strongin says she is also looking for race sponsors and volunteers.

"If anybody in the community wants to volunteer to help do something out here and they don't have a criminal background, we would love to hear from them," she said.

 

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Meydan joint venture aims to promote Chinese horse racing (Thoroughbred Times)

Posted: 28 Mar 2010 03:23 PM PDT


The builders of the opulent new Meydan Racecourse, which hosted the Dubai World Cup (UAE-G1) card for the first time on March 27, announced plans on Sunday for an ambitious joint venture with China, called Tianjin Horse City, a proposed development similar to Meydan City that also includes a racecourse.
 
Construction in Ninghe County, Tianjin, is expected to begin this year.

The multiple-use development, similar to Meydan City in Dubai, will be used to train 8,000 equestrian professionals and "breed 1,000 high-quality stud horses," according to a Meydan press release.

Tianjin Horse City also will produce horse feeds, conduct horse auctions, hold international and domestic horse races at a proposed Meydan Phoenix Racecourse, promote and impart equine culture and knowledge to young people, provide tourism services for the public, and protect the well being and interests of horses.

Tianjin Horse City is to be jointly established by Meydan City Corp., TAK Design Consultants of Malaysia, and China-based Zhouji Jiye and Tianjin Farm Group.

"The group will help fulfill the gaps in the equestrian sports and horse culture industry economy in China, and merge the modern equine industry operations system in the coming 15 years," Meydan said in a press release.

In a report in www.thenational.ae, Meydan expects to invest $4-billion on the development. Talks are ongoing with financial institutions in Dubai and China about the project, the aim of which is to invigorate the redevelopment of racing in China, which began disappearing after 1949 when the Communist Party took over, as well as to boost the nation's profile in Olympic equestrian events.

The company has prepared two five-year plans, the second of which is to be completed in 2020.

Between 2010 and 2015, an equestrian college, horse breeding base, feed plant, and auction market are to be constructed.

From 2016 to 2020, the focus will be "cohesion with the international horse industry."

"The commencement of the construction of a horse racing field will depend on the decision of the state on commercial horse racing," Meydan said. "The group will be fully prepared for such a construction."

Tianjin Horse City also will include five-star to seven-star luxury hotels, a clubhouse, commercial offices, and residential facilities by 2015. It is estimated that the project will pay hundreds of millions in taxes and profits to China within five years, provide employment for 10,000 people, and develop a horse industry economy that will establish production franchise of standard scales across China. Tianjin Horse City has filed its application to the Chinese Equestrian Association for the establishment of a national equestrian sports and horsing racing training base.

Mohammad al Khayat, commercial director for Meydan, told www.thenational.ae that the project has the support of the Chinese government, which donated the property for the development, and suggested that some contractors and suppliers would be willing to work without upfront payment. 

Meydan Racecourse, a multibillion-dollar facility that replaced Nad al Sheba Racecourse, was still in the midst of some construction ahead of the World Cup card.

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