Media release – Tasracing, 16 October 2024
Tasracing Annual Report 2024
The past five years of operations have seen substantial improvements across all aspects of the Tasmanian racing industry.
Highlights of the 2024 annual report include:
- Prize money and industry funding increased $0.48 million to $40.40 million ($39.92 million in 2022/23). This included a $1.38 million (3.9 per cent) increase in code funding.
- Total stakes money paid during the year across the three codes of racing increased $2.1 million to $32.86 million ($30.76 million in 2022/23).
- In the thoroughbred code, for the fourth time, and first time since 2008, John Blacker won the Australian Trainers Association Tasmanian Leading Trainer award with 68 winners and Anthony Darmanin won the Tasmanian Racing Club Tasmanian Leading Jockey Award for the first time with 57 wins.
- In the harness code, Tasracing purchased a slot for three years in the 2300-metre TAB Eureka for a Tasmanian-owned or bred horse to compete for $2.1 million in prize money in the world’s richest harness race. To select Tasmania’s representative, Tasracing holds an $80k race in Hobart named after the state’s best pacer in the modern era, Beautide. The inaugural Beautide race was won by Magician, which finished fourth in the Eureka final.
- In greyhounds, Tasmania’s feature Group 1 race, the Hobart Thousand, was won by Victorian visitor Crackerjack Bull, with the Group 2 Launceston Cup won by locally trained Fast Minardi Hili. The Group 3 Devonport Chase was won by the locally-trained Raiders Guide.
- Animal welfare is of critical importance to Tasracing across the three codes of racing. To demonstrate this, the company is:
- Continuing to invest in track infrastructure improvements that prioritise safety considerations.
- Enhancing and refocussing industry incentive programs to drive optimal welfare outcomes.
- Continuing to invest heavily in the Greyhound Adoption Program (GAP) with increased staffing levels, staff training and process refinements.
- Expanding the equine Off-The-Track (OTT) program to drive further demand for retired racehorses and help forge the bond between the OTT horse and its new rider.
- Drafting enforceable codes of practice for equine and greyhound welfare, which will provide guidance to the industry and reassurance to the public.
- Continuing to implement recommendations of the Sykes Review on animal welfare.
- Providing training support to industry participants and owners as well as information to the public on animal welfare matters.
- Elwick’s Tracks and Facilities Manager Chris Hay was recognised as the best turf manager in Australia when he won the prestigious Australian Sports Turf Managers Association’s (ASTMA) Excellence in Sportsfields and Grounds Management Award in June.
The Tasmanian racing industry’s economic contribution to the state is continuing to grow. It is important to recognise the role the industry plays in the state’s economy in terms of spending and employment. It is equally important to recognise the role the industry plays in developing and preserving social and community benefits in the state.
Tasracing are committed to the growth and sustainability of the racing industry and will continue to strengthen the performance of the company and, by extension, the Tasmanian racing industry.
Media release – Cassy O’Connor MLC, Greens Animal Rights spokesperson, 17 October 2024
Tasracing Report Confirms a Mendicant, Brutal Industry in Decline
The Tasracing annual report confirms what animal advocates and the Greens have long been saying – horse and dog racing are loss-making, brutal industries that continue to lose their social licence and public interest.
This past year, Tasracing received more than $36M in public funds, yet it still made a loss of $1.2M last financial year. This follows the pattern of decline in recent years.
Wagering numbers keep dropping, particularly in greyhound racing where they have fallen by a massive 16%. People aren’t showing up to the races despite Tasracing pumping money into marketing – and why would they?
Tasracing’s annual report exposes the many senseless deaths caused by this cruel industry. It also highlights the taxpayer-funded agency has learned nothing from years of scandals by again celebrating controversial figure Anthony Bullock with the ‘leading trainer’ award.
This is an industry in decline because it’s killing, and injuring dogs and horses at an obscene scale.
Forty-three (16%) retired greyhounds were killed last financial year, triple the rate of the previous year. 70 fewer dogs were rehomed than in previous years, and the rate of retirement declined by 10%. In addition to these numbers, two greyhounds died or were euthanised due to injuries.
While injuries aren’t recorded, the Annual Report confirms almost 50 horses who, cast aside from harness and thoroughbred racing, were killed before their time.
How can the government justify subsidising this mendicant, cruel industry?
The community can see this publicly-funded brutality, and overwhelmingly want it to stop. Why can’t the Liberals and Labor?
Media release – Animal Liberation Tasmania, 17 October 2024
Anthony Bullock awarded “Leading Trainer” despite controversies
The Tasracing Annual Report has finally been released for the 2023/24 financial year, and it is damning. In addition to significant losses across the sector, Tasracing has seen fit to award greyhound trainer Anthony Bullock ‘Leading Trainer’.
Despite refusing to award the ‘Leading Trainer’ award in the harness racing code, obviously to avoid having to grant this to Ben Yole, Tasracing saw fit to grant the greyhound equivalent award to Yole’s mate Bullock.
Bullock is no stranger to controversy, with multiple scandals attached to his name over the years. However, the 23/24 season was particularly problematic, with ALT exposing conditions at his Exeter property, his subsequent disqualification for alleged illegal lure use, and the absolute farce that was the appeals process with the TRAB.
Following his return to the track, numerous Bullock dogs have sustained serious injuries ranging from fractures to partial tail amputation. And the recently released ALT ‘Bad Apples’ report revealed that Bullock’s assertions that he does not use his bullring (where illegal lures were allegedly located) to be false, with photographic evidence proving otherwise.
There is no provision under the Tasracing greyhound policy manual that would exclude a person from receiving said award if they bring the industry into disrepute, as Bullock has done so often (Tah Bernard, failure to hold a kennel licence for a decade, kennel conditions, etc.). A disqualification may revoke eligibility, however successfully appealed disqualifications reinstate eligibility.
Overall, the Tasracing annual report does not reflect a healthy industry, with a $1.7 million loss before tax and a 10% decrease in race field revenue. But the greyhound industry in particular has failed to meet important performance indicators. The numbers of litters and pups born has halved since the preceding year. The industry failed to meet KPIs for the target number of race meets, total number of starters, and the average number of starters per race.
And the Greyhound Adoption Program has failed abjectly to meet targets for the rehoming of greyhounds, with a target of 150 dogs but an actual number of 83 greyhounds rehomed.
The greyhound industry is clearly in decline.
Animal Liberation Tasmania views the Tasracing Annual report for 2023/24 as almost as damning as our own ‘Bad Apples’ report and thank them for doing much of our anti-dog racing campaign work for us.
