Racing Foundation to welcome two new trustees in the new year

The Racing Foundation, a charity set up in 2012 to oversee the distribution of funds to charitable causes within racing, has announced the impending arrivals of two new trustees.

Alice Page and Algy Smith-Maxwell will join existing board members Linda Bowles, Susannah Gill, Louise Kemble, Mark Johnston and incoming chair Julia Budd from January 1, 2022.

Page completed a Thoroughbred and Horseracing Industries MBA at the University of Liverpool, while Smith-Maxwell, who rode as an amateur jockey for David Nicholson, has been involved in British racing and breeding for more than 30 years.

Both incoming trustees bring experience in the finance sector with Page responsible for strategy, planning and governance of the world's largest wealth manager, UBS, and Smith-Maxwell being fund manager and co-founder of Jupiter Merlin Portfolios.

Ian Barlow, who has served as the board's chair for the past six years and will leave along with fellow trustee William Rucker at the end of the year, said: "I'm pleased to welcome Alice and Algy to the Racing Foundation board. In addition to their evident passion for racing, they bring the deep experience in investment management that we need to oversee our endowment of some £100 million."

Barlow added: "It has been an honour to serve as a trustee and latterly as chairman. I thank my fellow trustees and our executive team led by Rob Hezel for their unfailing support."

Philip Rothwell fails in Limerick non-trier appeal

Trainer Philip Rothwell and jockey Adam Short failed in their respective appeals against the penalties handed out by the raceday stewards at Limerick last month when Duffys Hodey was deemed to have not run on his merits.

The stewards fined Rothwell €2,000 and suspended Duffys Hodey for 60 days and Short for ten days after they were found in breach of Rule 212A (ii) in the Fexco Asset Finance Handicap Hurdle in which the four-year-old finished sixth.

Those penalties were upheld by the appeals body on Monday, December 6, when Rothwell argued the fines and suspensions should not stand on the grounds that Duffys Hodey hung in the race and the stewards erred in their decision.

Rothwell explained that Short informed him the horse hung, which was also reported to the clerk of the scales and, after walking the horse back to the stables, the trainer felt Duffys Hodey looked lame.

Rothwell rages against raceday stewards after falling foul of non-triers rule

He also reported that the horse had lost a shoe in the race. Rothwell added that Duffys Hodey was certified as lame by his own vet the morning after the race, and had received physio treatment and not cantered since.

The trainer added that he was happy with Short's ride.

The appeals body did not accept Duffys Hodey hung left throughout the race and concluded he was not ridden to achieve the best possible placing.

They were satisfied the decision of the raceday stewards at Limerick on November 16 was justified and upheld the sanctions.

Watch Duffys Hodey's run at Limerick last month

Funding boost to help mothers in racing

The Women In Racing network has been given £140,000 to fund the next steps of the Racing Home scheme, a service aimed at supporting all areas of motherhood for participants in the sport.

Racing Home was born out of a report led by Dr Kate Clayton-Hathway, from Oxford Brookes University, which addressed the logistical and cultural issues of parenting for those involved in racing.

Following recommendations from the findings, the funding from the Racing Foundation and Kindred Group will involve creating a website to provide racing-specific resources regarding motherhood, while a network will be set up to create a support system for mothers.

Rob Hezel, chief executive of the Racing Foundation, said: "Racing is enormously reliant on its people as well as its horses and retaining dedicated staff is vital for long-term prosperity.

"The Racing Home project has the potential to revolutionise how parents and mothers are supported to stay in the industry and can enable racing to become a leader in this field across the sporting landscape."

Irish tracks and on-course bookmakers agree deal

The Association of Irish Racecourses (AIR) and the Irish National Professional Bookmakers Association (INPBA) have struck a deal to safeguard the betting ring with roughly half a million euros to be invested by Irish racecourses annually.

The proposal was devised by AIR and unanimously approved by the membership at a general meeting last week and will come into effect in the new year.

The details of the new regime include the abolition of the 0.25% turnover levy and payment in absence pitch fees. Pitch fees were previously set at five times the admission price for all pitch-holders but this will now be payable only by bookmakers who attend on the day.

A minimum of ten bookmakers will be required to attend every race meeting nationwide with the exception of all-weather racing, where a lower minimum requirement of eight bookmakers will apply.

In the event that the required minimum number of bookmakers are not present on any given raceday, all bookmakers holding pitches at that racecourse will be charged full pitch fees.

A trial period of 12 months has been agreed and will take effect from January 1, 2022. An ongoing review has also been agreed, to ensure that three months before the end of the trial period an agreement would be reached between the parties as to how to proceed after the trial period and in the absence of such agreement.

Ray Mulvaney, chairman of the INPBA, said: "The INPBA, AIR and HRI have come to an agreement that will add stability and certainty in the betting ring and I'd like to thank all those involved in the negotiations."

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