I hope you all found the Chairman's Trophy raceday at Sha Tin last Sunday very entertaining. For myself, I was impressed by the performance of More Bountiful as he won this Group 2 event in a fantastic fashion. Although I favoured Fellowship in this race and he ran an honest race as he usually did, I had to accept the defeat and agree that More Bountiful's success has yet again proved the quality of our elite four-year-olds this term. While you all were enjoying the exciting racing at Sha Tin that day, I met with a guest who came all the way from Australia to visit our racetrack in Sha Tin.
Having arrived Hong Kong to attend a legal conference in his capacity as the Attorney General of Victoria, Mr Rob Hulls, the Deputy Premier and also the Minister for Racing of Victoria, took the opportunity to join us for an afternoon of racing at Sha Tin. Being the first time we met with each other, I told him the details of our racing operation and also accompanied him to visit different facilities inside the racecourse.
Mr Hulls was very impressed with the Club's world class racing facilities. In particular, he was blown away by our Parade Ring, saying it is unique in the world, giving all spectators a magnificent view. He was also very interested in the facilities inside Stewards' Inquiry Room and found it very outstanding.
However, he was puzzled why Hong Kong racegoers, unlike what they did in Australia and many other countries, were not allowed to take their children to attend races here. He explained that many Aussies viewed racing as a great occasion for family gatherings, but not one that would lead children to engage in gambling activities at a later date. I certainly agreed with his view to some extent, but I also explained to him that we have a different cultural background here in Hong Kong that made the situation exceptional.
Apart from that, I have also introduced to Mr Hulls about the Club's unique role of operation, in which the Government levies a high level of tax from our betting gross margin, with the remaining sum going to charities and to support our racing operation. I've also told him the Club has been in talks with the Government concerning a proposed reform to lower the levels of betting tax on racing, as well as increasing the number of race days.
As the Minister for Racing in Victoria, Mr Hulls said this issue will not be at the level of government discussion in Australia as racing operators have the autonomy to do with the racing calendar what they please. He was surprised that the Hong Kong anti-gambling groups were putting their focus on racing. As in Australia, racing was of no concern at all and these groups are more concerned about the problems and adverse impacts relating to casinos and, especially, slot machines.
But, in general, both of us agreed that racing business does bring benefit to the local economy. While the racing business in Australia provided great support to its thoroughbred industry, the Club's racing business also provided a major revenue source for the Government, as well as creating great number of jobs and generate large amount of donations for local charities. It also benefits local tourism industry as thousands of overseas racing fans will also travel and take part in those international racing festivals like the Melbourne Cup at Flemington and Golden Slipper at Rosehill, as well as the Cathay Pacific Hong Kong International Races and Audemars Piguet Queen Elizabeth II Cup race days in Hong Kong.
Today we will also be announcing those selected overseas runners for the Audemars Piquet QEII Cup and Champions Mile on 26 April. Recent renewals certainly point to a race of the highest quality featuring stars such as Ouija Board and Admire Moon, the respective European and Japanese Horses of the Year, and the local champions Vengeance Of Rain, Viva Pataca, both of whom emerged victorious.
And any horse sent by South African trainer Mike de Kock is certainly to be respected given that he has trained the winner of this race for two of the past three years and also won the Cathay Pacific Hong Kong Cup last year with Eagle Mountain.
So check on our website later today to see which overseas runners will be coming to Hong Kong later this month for this great race and the Champions Mile.
But before that, we shall have four more race meetings, including the one we arrange to you at Happy Valley tonight. Among eight races on the card, I will be watching Mi Reilly and Natural Flame. Mi Reilly had to face a field of strong opponents in his previous run in a Class 1 race at Happy Valley, but he still managed to run a close third, just trailing the winner by one and a quarter of lengths. He will enjoy considerable advantage when returning to a Class 3 race tonight. Although he will have to carry 22 pounds more when compared to his weighing last run, I will still pay my attention to this runner and see if Douglas Whyte can help him to perform even better tonight.
For Natural Flame, this young gelding has his first appearance in a Class 3 race in a 1200m event at Sha Tin in February, but he still ran a creditable third despite he was drawn wide in the race. He will be running at Happy Valley tonight, but he earned a kind draw and will start the race from Gate 1. I hope he can continue his recent consistent performance this evening.
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