Racing heads move to replace claiming and conditions

A powerful horse racing lobby, the Jamaica Heads of Horse Racing Association (JHHRA), on Tuesday unanimously voted to petition Supreme Ventures Racing and Entertainment Limited (SVREL) to replace the system of conditions and claiming races at Caymanas Park with rating and handicapping-based optional claiming, ranging from classes 'A' to 'G'.

Chaired by Howard Hamilton, president of the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association of Jamaica, other association heads at the three-hour long meeting included presidents of both trainers' groups, Ryan Darby and Vincent Edwards of the United Racehorse Trainers Association of Jamaica (URTAJ) and Jamaica Racehorse Trainers Association, respectively.

Other trainers present were 14-time champion conditioner Philip Feanny, a principal of the country's top breeding outfit, HAM Stables, as well as URTAJ executives, Steven Todd and Lawrence Freemantle.

Randolph McLean represented Jamaica Racehorse Owners Association president, Laurence Heffes, whereas Shane Ellis, president, Jamaica Jockeys' Guild, and Fabian White, president, Grooms Association of Jamaica, voted on their organisations' behalf that the system of racing that has been in place for the last quarter of a century needed a radical overhaul in order for SVREL to be viable and the racing industry to rebound from decades of ruin, which led to government divesting the racetrack last year.

Hamilton, also a principal of HAM Stables where the meeting was hosted, said the occasion was long overdue and a petition is being fine-tuned, to engage SVREL in a series of meetings to not only address the system of racing but a range of other issues affecting the racing industry.

"The stakeholders, once more, are united in presenting the problems which exist in respect to their livelihood from racing. This was recently shown in our lobby to reverse the decision to rescind the breeders' bonus, which would have had serious implications for an already ailing sector.

"We have suffered with an inequitable claiming system, which needs to be changed to produce competitive racing, which will go a far way in helping to put the promoting company on a path to profitability. We need to meet with SVREL to finalise details," Hamilton pointed out yesterday.

Reacting to the groundswell of the JHHRA's meeting, owners' head Heffes said his association has summoned its members to gather next Thursday to review the proposed 10-point petition to SVREL, pointing out that he was in full support of most points raised.

"We definitely need a change and the timing is right with a new promoter. However, the owners will be meeting to discuss the document and make input where necessary," Heffes pointed out.

Facts and figures

1. The system of claiming and condition races was first introduced to Caymanas Park in January 1993.

2. Claiming and condition races, a product of North America, replaced the British system of rating and handicapping, which had horses racing in seven main classes, 'A' to 'G', for many years.

3. Every major racing jurisdiction in the world, except North America, are run on rating and handicapping - Europe, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Hong Kong and Japan.

4. Once entered in claiming races, horses are put up for non-retractable sale, starting at $120,000, meaning owners can lose their horses once they enter the paddock if a successful claim is made by a trainer, on behalf of a licensed owner.