A new season is under starter’s orders in ‘a kind of dream place’.
Brett Crawford’s preparations for training racehorses in Hong Kong will be put to their first test this weekend, as the city’s new season gets underway.
His first runner of the term, auspiciously named Speedy Smartie, lines up in the opener at Sha Tin racecourse on Sunday. Also auspicious is the jockey booking: Karis Teetan, the Mauritian ace who was once Crawford’s stable rider in Cape Town.
Crawford, a top conditioner in South Africa with more than 1,500 career wins, including 38 Grade 1 and two Durban July triumphs, has taken a brave leap into one of the most competitive racing jurisdictions in the world.
He has had the daunting task of setting up a new training yard from scratch. In addition to Teetan – now one of the world’s leading jockeys with his exploits over a decade in Hong Kong – Crawford has also had invaluable advice from countrymen David Ferraris and Tony Millard, both of whom have retired after successful training stints in the city.
One step at a time
“It hasn’t been easy, putting yourself out there in strange territory and unknown to everybody,” Crawford told the South China Morning Post this week.
“But owners here are more than willing to speak to you and make a decision after they’ve met with you; so that’s encouraging to get an opportunity.
“We’ve got 25 horses at the moment. There are a couple I think are in their right classes. A lot of them were racing until the end of last season, so we’ve just freshened them up and got them going again.
“There are a few that have dropped in rating and look like they can bounce back. If we can turn them around, I’m sure there are a few we can have a bit of fun with.”
Zimbabwe-born Crawford isn’t setting hard targets for his first Hong Kong campaign.
“It’s just about getting the best out of every horse I have in front of me, whether that be making him improve in Class Five or making him improve in Class Three,” he said.
“If they’ve been out of form and we can turn it around, that would show we’re on the right track. It’s just about seeing them run well and getting some winners on the board.”
Cutting-edge facilities unveiled
Crawford isn’t the only new thing in town. This week, the Hong Kong Jockey Club unveiled the latest phase of its HK$14-billion (R31.7-billion) racecourse master plan: new facilities designed to elevate racing as one of the city’s biggest tourist attractions.
The Champions Connection and Genso Eki venues have cutting-edge digital entertainment aimed at attracting younger people to the races and promoting Sha Tin as a “platinum race-going experience” for locals and tourists.
Among the stunning gizmos are three-dimensional digital displays of champion gallopers like Golden Sixty, Romantic Warrior and Silent Witness in virtual stables along walkways.
There is also a mechanical galloping horse sculpture, a full-sized lifelike robotic horse, digitally rendered thoroughbred horses on columns along the second and third floors, showcases of jockeys’ real-life lockers with personalised racing gear and pop-up kiosks offering food, drink and souvenirs.
Visitors can take a virtual ride on a legendary racehorse through extended reality (XR) technology, while an AI photo booth creates racing-themed selfies to share on social media.
British jockey David Probert, another new recruit to Hong Kong this season, was in awe: “It’s a kind of dream place, isn’t it? It’s kind of like Miami Beach. It’s a surreal place.”
