SINGAPORE — Sixteen months have flown by since the local horse racing fraternity was rocked by news of the Singapore Turf Club's (STC) impending closure, and like a thief in the night, the dreaded date of Oct 5 has sneaked up on everyone at Kranji with the 100th Grand Singapore Gold Cup as its epilogue. One of the first things...
, and like a thief in the night, the dreaded date of Oct 5 has sneaked up on everyone at Kranji with the 100th Grand Singapore Gold Cup as its epilogue.
Even if the close-knit racing family put their heads together and pulled it off, post-closure animal welfare remained a thorny issue. "One of the reasons we were able to run meetings every week even though our horse population was dropping was the opening of new quarantine centres in Malaysia," said the boss of Team Cheval Stable and racing manager of leading Thai outfit Falcon Racing Stable.Koh added: "Early this year, I had many sessions with the club's stables and facilities department to talk about the backlog when the last meeting comes up.
The faster flow of outgoing horses through ramped-up transport lanes helped ease the pressure of a potential horse overpopulation scenario post-Oct 5. He has won 14 races since June 2023, which, based on a trainers' cut of 6.25 per cent from the prize money, would be around $35,000, plus an estimated $30,000 for place prize money.
Acceptance and resignation finally set in, but several decisions along the way have helped sugar the pill and even helped the various stakeholders and community move on. "It was okay for those sending horses to Malaysia. The cost per horse on a truck is only $500, and without surprise, I would say 95 per cent of owners took that option," said champion trainer Jason Ong.
Monthly bedding and feed subsidies of $800 per horse, as well as enhanced racing incentive fees , were all major carrots to keep the show on the road.While the STC personnel of around 350 were informed of the exit strategy planned over three phases until 2027, other staff in the stables — comprising syces , track riders, feeder — seemed to have fallen through the cracks.
"I've also applied for other jobs as interchange supervisors with SMRT and Transit Tower, but they did not ask for my resume, only Mandai zoo has.
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