A SETBACK THAT WILL LEAVE LONG LASTING DAMAGE

Frank Taylor may have been one of the most noted and long established names in British sports journalism in a career lasting well over fifty years, but despite all his achievements and awards his biggest single claim to fame will be that he was one of the fortunate survivors of the 1958 Munich air disaster.

He enjoyed a long stint at the Daily Mirror during which he had a spell in the additional role of editing the sports post bag and nominating the winning letter. In November 1976, one of the chosen winners was a A.W. Elbourn from Faringdon, Oxon who was concerned with the amount of money being taken from the prize pool for the big flat races by foreign raiders.

Whether it was the fact that racing was not Taylor's main sport or whether racing did not realise how well it was faring during hard economic times, he introduced the prize letter, by claiming that racing was facing hard times, pointing to an estimated £903,000 of the £1,350,000 available in the top races, being taken away from these shores.

Mr Elbourn himself did not mince his words, going as far as declaring that the " British turf had suffered a near disaster and the biggest setback in its history", all because, by his reckoning, the French and Irish had taken over half a million in prize money between them.

One has to remember that during the flat season that the curtains had just been drawn across, the 2,000 Guineas was the only English classic not scooped up by the French; the race falling to Wollow who came home first in a field of seventeen, compiled of seventeen different owners and seventeen different trainers.

This profile was the norm for all of the top events - Frank Taylor passed away in 2002 and I've no idea whether Mr Elbourn is still with us but God knows how they would have felt if they could have foresaw the profile of the typical big events nowadays, with the jam in a shockingly small number of jars.

It was what made it all the more amazing that the French based Argentinian Angel Penna trained the Wildenstein owned trio Flying Water, Pawneese, and Crow to win the 1,000 Guineas, Oaks and St Leger respectively. Their winners were their sole representatives in these events. Indeed, the sport truly was something to rejoice in those days.

Now, we needn't even dwell on so few taking such a high percentage of the prize money as horse racing in the UK is running so low on prize money to offer it is being served in rations. This really hit home when you saw the amount picked up by winning connections in Saturday's  Northumberland Plate.

When the 3 lb claimer John Higgins steered the Tom Waugh trained Tartar Prince to victory in the 1971 renewal of the Northumberland Plate, the monetary prize for winning connections was a total of £5,266. By 1979 when Bruce Raymond carried Lady Beaverbrook’s silks on board Totowah to take the honours, the winner’s funds had risen significantly to £14,840.

It was 1988 when the winning prize was on parity with what was on offer at the weekend, thirty two years later. That day Michael Roberts was aboard the Jimmy Fitzgerald trained Treasure Hunter. In the interim period the costs of keeping a racehorse in training have risen considerably. Certainly by enough to have made the victor's prize of £92,000 for the 2019 merely par for the course for a showcase handicap.

Consider that when the jockey and trainer's share are taken out of the winning connections pot of under £25,000, there will be barely enough to cover twelve months training fees. Particularly as the winning yard does not appeal as a set up that cuts corners for a Poundshop training fee.

And while the owner of the winner, similarly to the majority in the yard, are unlikely to be forever checking their accounts to ensure they have sufficient to cover the monthly fees, there will come a time when owners of similar standing will take a stand on principal.

Look at it this way, Sheikh Mohammed once threatened to pull out of British racing due to the prize money situation. That was over twenty years ago but he has brought the subject to surface on occasions since when prize funds, compared with the dire levels they have fallen to now, were reasonably buoyant and increasing steadily.

For the many owners further down the scale with one or two animals in their name they cannot afford to play a poker game for they will simply be unable to sustain their outgoings, something that was at the heart of the matter when industry wide action was taken to boycott the Arena Leisure owned venues for a short period last February.

Again, this was not confined solely to those operating in the lower tiers. The chief organiser from the training ranks was Ralph Becket, whose list of patrons include some of the wealthiest involved in the sport. Remember, this hullabaloo was in full flow during a period, that if those involved were now given the opportunity to return in time to, they'd bounce up and down with joy, breath a sigh of relief and get on with it.

Industrial action cannot be an option now. With the plague impacting the wider society as a whole such protestations would cause the industry to be viewed with ridicule as well as a degree of cold indifference. Downsizing is now inevatable and if Mr Elbourn's claim that British racing was suffering its biggest setback in history was totally out of context back in 1976, it would not be wide of the mark to describe the present.

Image from scrapbook

A GOOD WEEK BUT ONE THAT MUST BE PUT INTO PERSPECTIVE

That the 2020 flat racing season has been salvaged to to a degree that could only have been hoped for two months ago is something to be thankful for but, as with most other industries, there will be a staggering and sustained financial shortfall to be reckoned with once a full assessment can be made.

Prizes even at the very top have reverted back to levels of many years ago. In the very short term of a season or two it may not make much difference to an owner of a well bred entire winning a Group 1, but for someone with a hardy four year old gelding who will be able to tough it out in high class company for another two seasons at the very least, then the temptation to seek to sell, or to race in Australia or Hong Kong must be far greater than it normally is.

It’s tickling to dwell over the fact that it was as long ago as the 1980’s that Brought Scott, in his unofficial role as cheerleader for the Maktoums, would remind us how poorer UK racing would be if the family suddenly decided to up sticks and transfer their whole operation to a far away location.

In fact, on occasions he looked into the camera with such an intense expression as he spoke, it was as though he was responding to a critic declaring, “ they are ruining the sport, we don’t need them !”, but who could not be seen or heard by the television audience.

One must now start to wonder just how long certain races are able to retain their prestige with reduced prize money. If the deprived funds impact for just one or two seasons then it is something that can be overcome. But what if the new levels become the norm while remaining unaffected in the Southern Hemisphere?

Put it this way, when the powers that be in this country address criticism from those who maintain that the increases in prize funds at the top level are needless and disproportionate, they will try to justify their approach by warning that retaining prestige in a top level race can only be maintained with money levels similar to the other major racing nations.

At the other end of the scale, many of those involved with horses competing at the bread and butter fixtures will be forced to leave the industry if no solution is found to solve the crisis. Those departing will include trainers in addition to a multitude of owners. If this sounds like an overstatement then consider that the lower levels of the industry went on strike over lower grade prize money levels at a time when the present world impasse belonged to sci fi fiction.

The racing structure does have to be pyramid shaped but many fans despair how bloated the basement tiers became under Peter Savill’s tenure as chairman of the old BHB. This model fits in with the sport harvesting funds from the bookmaking industry through a gross tax profits agreement though purists will point to the resultant day to day menu of too many meetings to keep a handle on along with too much tripe.

There are races framed for horses rated so low that you could argue that they should be flapping at the likes of Hawick. This of course leads to the subjects of over production, animal welfare and wastage. These are areas that will not be able to escape the spotlight for much longer as the sport is forced to cut its cloth accordingly and downsize.

John Gosden has visualised this but for many it is something of a taboo subject. And it’s baffling why ITV racing have been boasting of the audiences tuned into Royal Ascot as though it is the beginning of an upturn in the fortunes of the game, while at the same time choosing not to allow even a moderate amount of air time to examine the detrimental long term impact the past few months will have on a sport that already had enough worries before the plague arrived.

It can’t be repeated enough how much better racing was in the days the fixtures were served, as top chefs will say, to leave you wanting a little more. Now the whole programme resembles an all you can eat for a fixed price but with the risk of picking up a dose of food poisoning.

Those of a certain age can sleep easy with the comfort that they followed the sport in the halcyon days of the 1970’s and 1980’s, knowing with certainty that the sport will never return to both the status and enjoyment levels that existed then.

Yes, it’s been a good week considering the circumstances with Stradivarius producing a memorable visual performance in the Ascot Gold Cup even if not beating a line up that could be considered anywhere bordering on above average for the event, a race which fell apart in conditions where winning margins exaggerate superiority.

Sagaro ( pictured) took his third Ascot Gold Cup on good ground by five lengths with Piggott sitting quietly until gently asking his mount to extend, with John Sharratt returning a comment for Raceform of  ‘ v easily’.  The runner up was another great French stayer Buckskin, the third home Citoyen completing a Gallic whitewash. They’d filled the first three places in the Prix du Cadran with Buckskin winning on that occasion. The fourth horse home was Bruni, widely acknowledged as the most visually impressive post war winner of the St Leger.

Despite those being times when widespread industrial action was continually on the daily main news agenda, there existed no dark clouds on horse racing’s horizon. The future seemed infinitely assured, it was a major sport and you could not imagine it being anything else at a time when many successful top flight football clubs could not fill out despite tickets being available for tuppence. Football was of course always far bigger but not by the country mile that exists between the two now.

Contrast with the present - admittedly football is going through a crisis period with the likes of Sky trying gimmicks and no doubt instructing guests to be more outspoken with the already outspoken guests asked to be even angrier, all to try and stem the cancellations of contracts -  but at the end of the day it will at least recover to a level whereby it will safely remain head and shoulders in popularity above the other sports.

But racing is, putting it politely, deep in the mire. For some, it will mean having to leave the industry and begin a new life in an unknown sphere, for others, in particular many long term fans, they will at least have their fingers crossed that the new landscape offers something that if not able to match that of a few decades back at least can be tracked, even savoured on occasions.

But wishing that the sport returns to a fixture list size of fifty years back while also retaining its quality with the jam spread wide, is unfortunately an unrealistic hope.

Image from cover of Pacemaker International 

A SPORT ENCIRCLED WITH WORRIMENT

It would be foolish for anyone to consider the big year on year increase in the terrestial television viewing figures for the Guineas meeting coverage and believe that racing is on the pathway to securing a new born boost in popularity.

In normal circumstances Saturday would have seen the final qualifying session of the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, while the England cricket team would be in the third day of their first Test Match against the West Indies at the Oval - not to mention all the programmes covering the countdown to the beginning of the Euro Championships which was due to begin in a few days time.

It's a mark of where the once major sport of horse racing now stands in the pecking order in the UK when final Grand Prix qualifying sessions attract a larger television audience. 

So together the fates conspired to provide the sport with what could be interpreted as a golden opportunuty to showcase its strengths, with even the dip in temperatures outside keeping many from their gardens.

Looking at the present state of the various sports objectively, horse racing is not reliant on an attending audience to maintain the quality of experience for the living room viewer. Indeed, we were even spared those obtuse and ingratiating interviews with the victorious jockeys, as they are led back in off the course.

This is not to say that a pre or post race opinion of a trainer cannot enhance the viewer experience provided the questions are tailored for the circumstances, similar to an early day recording of a chat with one or two of the riders, or a post race jockey interview after the weigh in, when he is able to watch a replay with the interviewer and offer an insight with his mind now clear and relaxed.

But all in all, given the circumstances, nothing too major is taken away from the core attraction if you are genuinely interested in the sport, which is not something that could be said for the football fanatics who may be facing an impending meltdown of their sport.

If the restart follows the same pattern as the Bundesliga where, as feared by many, the empty venues have whittled away ' home' advantage taking away a component of the game, then SKY will have a job on their hands billing their games. They won't be able to come up with the ' make the journey to....where they will face the hostile atmosphere of...'  line and subscriptions are going to be cancelled like never before.

There may be initial enthusiasm but the viewers will soon realise it's not football how they know and like it. The subscription TV companies will try adding all sorts of red button gimmicks but it probably won't wash. This could finally be the time when the endlessly expanding bubble bursts.

This does not mean that those with horse racing's interests at heart should think that they have the product to take advantage of the situation for there is most unlikely to be any substantial increase in online wagering on the sport which means that the pending mass closures of high street betting offices will put the sword to the sport with a massive shortfall in funding. And not to mention the separate issue of those venues that have sold their soul to the cult summer crowds.

For the well being of the sport it would be wiser for those on the power buttons to move their attention away from hoping to get one over on the round ball game and hope for an outcome that favours both - namely the dreaded plague fading away with the realisation that the imposition of lockdown was unnecessary, an opinion shared by some respected scientists.

And if by the end of the month there is no reversal in the pattern of declining fatalities, hopes will increase that no notable second wave will be forthcoming. It would still take until next spring to be confident that it won't be returning but the prospect of sporting venues with large capacities as early as the spring jumping festivals is considerably better than the alternative of seeing this uncertainty lasting for a long, indefinite period of time, that could relegate the status of horse racing here to a level unknown over the past century and a half.

A further area of concern must be drawn to the anti racing groups. Now, those of us who followed the sport in the 1970's and 1980's know full well that the opposition to the sport was far more numerical than it is now. This stems from the fact that a countless number of souls who potentially could have been shaped into animal liberation 'revolutionaries' are instead concentrating their full focus and energy on the just cause of saving the oceans and its inhabitants from the grim affects of pollution.

The problem lies within clever utilisation of social media which can enable a relatively small group of people to allay the impression that they are far more widespread and powerful than is really the case. And as they will be open to new angles to create an impact it is hard not to believe that some of the antics  witnessed this past weekend will have had their light bulbs flickering away.

Put it this way, is it that far fetched to imagine a group of wannabe revolutionaries descending on St Jame's Park with the intention of inflicting wanton damage on the Queen Mother Memorial statue, drumming up support by linking the racing connection with crimes of the British Empire.

And even less imagination is required to picture a sizeable mass of stirred up demonstrators descending upon the Charles 11 statues in Soho Square, on the Rowley Mile course in Newmarket or up in Edinburgh, as here they have a luminary who played a pivotal role not only in the development of horse racing but also in the legalisation of Britain's involvement in the slave trade. Oh dear!

image by Prioryman - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0!