AT A SIMPLE ceremony held in their Smyth Street business office yesterday, Jumbo Jet Auto Sales launched their sixth annual Guyana Cup horse racing event, which is scheduled to gallop off at the Port Mourant race track on Sunday, August 26 from 11:00hrs.
Eleven races, including three feature events is carded for the day and according to race coordinator and ardent horse-racing enthusiast Melissa Chattergoon, this event is not only dubbed the largest one in Guyana’s horseracing calendar, but is looked forward to by jockeys and stables across the Caribbean.
“This is indeed the largest horseracing meeting to be held in Guyana and we are looking to encourage traditional and even non-traditional horseracing fans and enthusiasts to come out and grace the venue with their presence.
“We expect keen and intense competition on race day, especially with over $30M in stakes and prizes being up for grabs, while there will be lots of international jockeys from Canada, USA, Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago and Jamaica just to name a few countries, who have signalled their intention to come and race here,” said Chattergoon.
She told the media gathered at the event along with Chairman of the Guyana Horse Racing Authority’s (GHRA) Interim Management Committee (IMC) Retired Chancellor of the Judiciary Cecil Kennard, that heavy police presence, along with Jumbo Jet’s security personnel and medical assistance will be present on the day in question, even as she encouraged lots of families and overseas guests to turn up.
“We want those who will be coming out to the Port Mourant track to witness the day’s event, to feel safe in every way possible whether it is actual security, or even for medical attention, as an ambulance will also be there if anyone has to be rushed to the hospital.
“We are doing this, as persons need to feel safe and secure in every possible way and with the prize money for one race being increased from $2M to $3M, we know persons would be coming out in full force to back their favourite horse and they would need the necessary security, which we are obliged to and will be providing” stated Chattergoon.
In his brief remarks, Kennard lauded the sponsor, who has so far formed an alliance with telecommunications service provider Digicel and beverage manufacturing giant Banks DIH Limited, to make the event a successful one and for the efforts they put in to pay such attractive prizes on the local scene.
According to the IMC Chairman, horseracing in Guyana had no legislation before, which means the sport was not being governed properly.
“I must commend the organisers of the upcoming Guyana Cup Six, for their efforts to pay out such attractive prize money for this event, because most of us would know horseracing is an expensive sport and it takes quite a lot to maintain the horses who are eating while we are sleeping.
“I would wish that this meeting is a success and I know it will be as lots of Guyanese would be home for the summer during the August holidays,” said Kennard who told his audience that a draft legislation was prepared by the IMC and forwarded to the Minister of Sport for his perusal and approval in Parliament.
Kennard said the sport is on the move and when the legislation has been approved, there will be a much smoother administration of the sport in the future, since in times past there was a clash of dates when clubs organised their events.
Compton Sancho, co-coordinator of the event said several horses such as Whosoever, Jet Set Go, Fresh Again, Swing Easy, Awesome Warrior, Night Crescendo and Got to Dream among others, are expected to set to blaze the track with their speed on race day.
Persons desirous of registering their horses for the event can do so through Chandu Ramkissoon (624-9063 or 232-0633) and Kris Jagdeo on 624-6123 or 322-0369 as soon as possible, as no late entries will be accommodated.
Of the three feature races that are set for the day, it’s the first one that involves horses classified A and Lower, which will attract the attention of the patrons, not because it will cover a distance of 1400 metres, but because the first place prize is G$3M, with the second-, third- and fourth-place finishers, pocketing G$1.5M, G$750 000 and G$375 000 respectively.
The other two feature events, which will be run as the organisers see fit, carry a first prize of G$2M and G$1M for Guyana and West Indies-bred Three- and Two-year-old Open horses respectively, while the E and Lower Class horses will compete for G$900 000.
However, in order for the organisers to pay a fourth place prize, seven horses will have to be in the starters’ gate for the specific event, while five will have to be in the starters’ gate, if a third place prize is to be paid. As is customary with horseracing in Guyana, the organising committee of the Guyana Cup reserves the right to cancel any race that was advertised to run.
Also, while horses are subjected to reclassification in accordance with the GHRA rules under which the event will be held, horses are also subjected to reclassification pending the results of any race meeting held prior to the sixth running of the Guyana Cup, while the balance of entries must be paid in full before the day or on the day of the event.