The 252nd Gimcrack Club Dinner hears leading figures call for changes in horse racing

Guests at the 252nd York Gimcrack Club Dinner held at the city’s racecourse on Tuesday night, heard both the British Horseracing Association’s chief executive, Julie Harrington, and leading dual code owner Tony Bloom, say that all stakeholders need to work together for the betterment of racing.

Bloom, a highly successful businessman and owner of Premier League side Brighton and Hove Albion, is also a keen fan of both codes of racing and was addressing guests as tradition dictates, as the owner of the colt Lake Forest, winner of this year’s Al Basti Equiworld Dubai Gimcrack Stakes at the Ebor Festival.

Bloom said he fears the quality of the sport is being diluted due to there being too many meetings and said he hoped the introduction of Premier Days next year would help increase the sport’s popularity – especially among younger or less committed followers of the sport.

He also said that racing should introduce a clear break between its seasons to allow anticipation and interest to build ahead of another campaign as happens with other sports like football.

He said: “I fear that racing’s Flat and Jump seasons have come to be thought of as a single, continuous 12-month cycle.

“Without heavy lifting, it should be possible to install a 10-14 day break prior to the start of each season, which would be very helpful in terms of focusing attention and building anticipation.

“Racing must have confidence that it is a great sport in its own right and not sell itself short by saturating every free moment with more.”

Bloom, a successful sports bettor and poker player, said both himself and Lake Forest’s co-owner Ian McAleavy would be willing to play their part by investing more money into racing.

But he said plans to introduce affordability checks would have to be done carefully, otherwise it could drive people who can afford to gamble away from racing.

“A balance has to be struck,” he warned. “Otherwise, far too many people who want to bet, and do so responsibly and within their means, will be driven away from betting on horse racing, which will have broader ramifications for the sport and the industry as a whole.”

For her part, Harrington, said the sport’s reluctance to embrace change, coupled with a lack of transparency as to how money passes through the sport, made it feel like British racing was “like driving a Ferrari with the handbrake on”, at the moment.

Harrington said: “Let’s not forget we are the country’s second-biggest spectator sport. We remain a global leader in breeding, training, racing. We are one of Britain’s greatest exports. We should be purring along like a Ferrari. But too often vested interests and a general reluctance to embrace change makes it feel like we are driving a Ferrari with the handbrake on.”