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STAGE SET FOR BANGALORE WINTER RACING SEASON

By Ikram Khan | 29 Nov 2022 | BANGALORE


The stage is set and the Bengaluru winter racing season promises to throw-up a good number of classic hopefuls this winter, taking into account that all the leading trainers at this premier racing centre have a couple of good bred in the purple juveniles under their care.

This apart, the Bangalore Turf Club (BTC) will play host  to the champion of champions event, the Indian Turf Invitation Cup on the first Sunday of March next year and the new management committee spearheaded by BTC chairman Shivkumar Kheny is ready with their new plans and designs for the annual racing spectacle.

"The winter season will be very competitive. The track is in ship-shape condition and the jockeys after a couple of mock races disclosed that the fast track will help provide the perfect platform  for the  star performers to  scale a new high this winter, said Kheny.

70 Jockeys including seven claiming allowance have been issued `A' license and 46 jockeys including six claiming allowance have gained `B' license.

A couple of old hats in the game pointed out that the three-week delay has in fact helped trainers prepare their horses to strike at the start and that's a good sign taking into account that punters love competitive fields and good returns on their investments.

Pleased with the response to the opening day's races on Friday,  Dec 2, good number of entries in all the categories, Kheny revealed that most pros  are ready to make an impact early on in the season. And then maintain the momentum till the very end.

The aggregate total prize money for the 22-day winter season excluding the stakes for the Indian Turf Invitation Cup week-end is 13.31 crores. And a performance linked incentive of 15 percent for local horses is added to the costs listed out this winter.

Kheny disclosed that S Chockalingam is nominated the chairman of the Board Of Appeal. Y Jagannath, Kenneth Pinto, K R Prakash, I S N Prasad and C H Pratap Reddy are the other members of the Board Of Appeal.

The Karnataka Classic Stakes framed on the second day offers stakes amounting to Rs 12 lakh and this event is certain to attract the best. While the trainers are busy finalising their entries for the races on the first two days,  the railbirds are working out the many permutations and combinations to start the season on a winning note.

The turf clubs have not been able to impress on the GST council to get a reduction in the 28 percent GST slab which is slowly killing the sport and this should be the top priority of all the racing clubs. GST first and All-India tote next it should be rather than giving tote importance when punters are no more interested in tote betting knowing that dividends at tote are poor compared to what is offered at bookmakers' ring.

One other issue which the club needs to address quickly is the increase in the syces salary issue which has surfaced and could snow-ball into a big problem. And the onus is on decision makers of the club to tactfully handle this  issue.