Minimum Saturday metropolitan prizemoney of $150,000, a new $2 million race at Randwick on Melbourne Cup day and a revamped Sydney spring carnival are among a raft of initiatives being introduced by Racing NSW.
The changes have been unveiled at a media conference on Wednesday with Racing NSW chief executive Peter V’Landys saying they are part of a big picture approach as racing looks to shore up its future.
Attracting a younger audience to the races underpins Racing NSW’s strategy and ‘The Big Dance‘, a fresh $2 million, 1600m race at Randwick on Melbourne Cup day, will be an important cog in that wheel.
The feature will be restricted to horses who have contested any one of 25 Country Cups across NSW that year, will be held after the Melbourne Cup is run, and will be part of a day of celebration which will also include a performance by a major international musical act after the final event.
V’Landys says Racing NSW is not trying to take away from Victoria’s pinnacle event but rather capitalise on it, comparing Melbourne Cup day for the racing industry to Valentine’s Day for a florist.
“I use the analogy of a florist. Next week, it’s Valentine’s Day so why wouldn’t all the florists be open on that particular day when you’re going to sell the most product?” V’Landys said.
“On that particular day, the Victorians do a great job of attracting a national audience and we’re just going to provide our own flowers.”
Attracting a younger demographic to the races on Melbourne Cup day is an important part of Racing NSW’s vision.
The Everest has been a major success in that area and V’Landys says continuing to find ways to bring new clients to the industry is vital.
“The Everest at the moment, 80 per cent of the audience is under 35. On Melbourne Cup day, we want to make sure on that day, the majority of the audience is under 35,” V’Landys said.
“You have to look, as a sport, 20 years ahead. If you don’t start attracting those under 35s now, when they turn 40 or 50, they won’t even know what a race is.”
The Big Dance will be one of two new major races introduced in the spring, along with The Five Diamonds, a $2 million, 1800m race restricted to five-year-olds and held on November 5.
The Spring Champion Stakes will have a major refresh with a prizemoney boost to $2 million and will be scheduled for later in October, while the Winx Stakes ($500,000 to $750,000) and Silver Eagle ($500,000 to $1 million) have both received significant prizemoney injections.
However, the bulk of Racing NSW’s $25 million injection will be distributed across the board with picnic, country and provincial racing to all benefit from increased minimum prizemoney levels.
Midweek metropolitan races will also rise from $50,000 to $55,000 with the biggest jump in Saturday city races, which will be run for a minimum of $150,000, an increase of $20,000.
A commitment of $6 million has also been made to upgrade the course proper at Warwick Farm, with Rosehill and Randwick to receive similar attention down the track.
Racing NSW chairman Russell Balding believes the changes will cement NSW racing’s strong foundations and help to strengthen the overall health of the industry.
“We are confident that the additional increases in prizemoney, the addition of the two new races, the important tweaks of our spring carnival as outlined today will not only further improve returns to owners, but it will also ensure we attract the best possible race fields, which will continue to grow our revenue and strengthen and ensure the sustainability of our industry,” Balding said.