Chinese New Year has dawned with another new challenge for Hong Kong but it is important to make several key points about our approach to the outbreak of coronavirus.
The first is to reiterate that our decision to continue racing with special arrangements in place has not been taken lightly. We have performed systematic risk analysis and response from leading public health experts has been positive.
With that in mind we will continue to race at Happy Valley on Wednesday. On the night, apart from essential parties such as horse owners, trainers, jockeys, Club officials and Stewards etc., only those customers who already have a prior reservation at racecourse restaurants will be admitted.
Patrons who wish to cancel their bookings will be given full refund. Other racecourse facilities such as Beer Garden, public stand and betting halls will be closed. All customers will receive temperature screening before entry and will be advised to wear medical masks.
All Off-Course Betting Branches (OCBB) will be closed today to avoid potential crowding. All Interactive, Telebet and 1886 Telebet Automated services will continue to function as normal.
This is a difficult time for Hong Kong but racing plays a very important role and the measures in place mean that we are being even more prudent and responsible than any restaurant situation.
We had some excellent racing on Monday. Exultant showed what an exceptional horse he is again with a second Centenary Vase success, while Golden Sixty is clearly a rising star after his dominant Hong Kong Classic Mile win.
The Golden Sixty story is a wonderful example of Hong Kong racing at its best and a perfect example of our investment in homegrown talent. His trainer Francis Lui has worked in the Jockey Club system all his life and is enjoying his best ever season with not one but two potential Derby horses, while Vincent is gaining deserved reward for his hard work and talent and is now not just one of Hong Kong’s top riders but also one who can hold his own globally.
As for Golden Sixty, he now has the potential to develop into one of Hong Kong’s top milers and earn a place in the 2020 World’s Best Racehorse Rankings. Ryan Moore, who rode the winner’s fast-finishing stablemate More Than This, was impressed with both horses. More Than This will surely appreciate a step up to 1800m and the BMW Hong Kong Derby trip of 2000m and it will be fascinating to see what happens when he meets Golden Sixty again in next month’s Hong Kong Classic Cup.
The headlines that these star horses and jockeys make will be followed closely by up to 800,000 people in Hong Kong alone and, having spoken to a lot of core racing fans, I am genuinely sorry for loyal customers who were unable to watch the action either at Sha Tin or in our Off-Course Betting Branches.
Our thanks go out to the media for continuing to help get our message across and to all the Jockey Club teams who helped to conduct a major operation so quickly and efficiently.
Our apologies go out to loyal customers we cannot serve currently. Various plans are taking shape to help address these issues. We have seen a significant increase in the number of betting accounts opened and, from 3 February, we will launch a new feature which will allow customers to transfer funds to and from their betting app in a way that was not possible in the past. After the setup, all funds transfers will be instant, online and free of charge.
In conclusion, CNY arrangements will likely have to stay for a significant period of time which, in my view, could be at least six to eight weeks. We will review the situation on a day to day basis and conduct a systematic risk analysis to determine which measures we have to take to protect our employees and customers.
Monday’s measures were not a one-off. We hope that these continuing special measures enable us to continue to race but this is not a certainty.
It was a pleasure to be part of a LONGINES World’s Best Racehorse Rankings ceremony in London last week and one of the most striking themes was the global success of older stars.
The 15 horses rated 124 or higher were all aged four or more – with eight aged five and three aged seven – in a list that illustrated what good horses can achieve given time to reach their full potential.
Beauty Generation was rated 127 for the second year in a row and ended 2019 as world’s best miler and fourth highest rated horse in the world, just a pound behind Enable, Waldgeist and Crystal Ocean.
All told, 20 Hong Kong horses figured in the rankings, with Beat The Clock’s Hong Kong Sprint and Chairman’s Sprint Prize honoured as the two best 1200m races in the world and the Queen’s Silver Jubilee Cup named the highest rated 1400m contest.
Hong Kong staged five of the world’s top 25 G1’s, headed by a memorable QEII Cup in which Win Bright mastered eight G1 winners and smashed Sha Tin’s 2000m track record in beating Exultant and the subsequent Cox Plate and Arima Kinen winner Lys Gracieux.
That total was just one fewer than the UK and one more than Japan and the USA – and the fact that it came from a horse population of around 1,300 makes it all the more impressive.
Hong Kong has again shown it holds a strong position at horse racing’s pinnacle and, with this year’s Classic Series off and running, we can now look forward to a new wave of young stars showing what they are capable of.
Moving on to Wednesday’s action, the Class 2 Tin Lok Handicap (1650m) is the final race 1650m with Circuit Glory and Reliable Team to set a good pace. Easy Go Easy Win and Red Desert will be in close attendance.
Reliable Team is a Derby prospect and has been very consistent whilst moving up the ratings this season. He is well drawn in stall 2 and will get his preferred run on the pace under Joao Moreira. He is a win and place chance on the strength of his good form and the likely tempo of the race.
High Rev is back to Happy Valley where he is a three-time winner from four starts over the course and distance. He will do his running from the back and is a solid place chance. Not Usual Talent will get a good run and is likely to show improvement as a place chance along with Happy Dragon.
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