Go Racing In Yorkshire Annual Awards Luncheon
Ian Barlow, RCA Chairman, spoke recently at the annual Go Racing In Yorkshire Annual Awards Luncheon.
Three months into his new role as Chairman of the Racecourse Association, the Go Racing In Yorkshire Annual Awards has been the first opportunity for Ian to speak publicly about the challenges Racing faces and the role racecourses will play in meeting these challenges.
Ian set out his vision of what British Racing needs to achieve to sustain its claim of having the best Racing in the world:
1. That the quality of our Racing is unsurpassed, measured by the ratings of the horses who are trained here and the races staged.
2. That the Sport be re-established in the country's psyche appearing frequently on the front pages of the newspapers, not just once or twice a year for the Grand National or Royal Ascot.
3. That British Racing be, by a clear margin, the second most watched sport in the UK after football with 10 million racing annually and attendances growing.
4. That British Racing be rated by customers as the best value for money of any visitor attraction or sport in the UK.
5. That racecourses should be at the heart of the communities in which they are located.
Ian Barlow said: 'Our racecourses have a huge role to play in achieving these goals. They are the commercial heart of the sport with the talent and the management capabilities. They are already doing a great job maintaining attendances through the current downturn and investing in their facilities, £550 million over the past 5 years.
It will take time to fulfil these five criteria but they will make our sport more attractive to our key investors, the owners, who put more than £250 million annually into Racing and to our key customer groups, racegoers, sponsors and punters. Particularly punters because they are our largest source of income via the bookmakers.'
For further information please contact the RCA on 01344 873538 or info@racecourseassociation.co.uk
You can read the Chairmans speech :- RCA Chairmans Speech