Under Plan, France Could See Four Tracks Close

Racing at four French tracks including Saint-Malo could cease in cost-cutting measures being put forward in the country. The latest proposals to emerge from the work of French racing's Task Force could see a refocusing of many provincial racecourses, with Thoroughbred racing at Saint-Malo, Amiens, Les Sables d'Olonne and Tarbes set to cease completely. French racing's Task Force was set up earlier this year by France Galop president Guillaume de Saint-Seine with the mission of finding radical measures aimed at returning the sport to financial equilibrium by 2029. Five eminent racing and breeding figures were chosen from outside of the various committees which govern French racing, and have been working on a number of different strategic areas. An initial look at cutting costs identified €29.8 million ($34.6 million) in efficiencies, but one area to come under the spotlight since has been the costs of maintaining racing across more than 200 racecourses in France, most of which are run by local racing societies and which report to ten regional committees. There are 231 active courses in total, and, while Longchamp may host only Flat racing, Auteuil solely jump racing and Vincennes is dedicated to trotting, a great many provincial tracks host all three. Under the leadership of insurance professional Stephanie Daburon, who is also president of Saumur racecourse and a steward, the cartography work group has analyzed the tracks in each of the ten regions in relation to their local horse populations, the average field sizes, the costs in staging Thoroughbred racing on each site and their suitability to stage racing in terms of safety and welfare. Saint-Seine said that, while he expected thorough examination and debate of the proposals as they make their way through French racing's various committees, the initial response had been one of calm, with most people consulted agreeing that "doing nothing is not an option". The recommendations are divided between courses in the regions which stage premium PMU meetings—those that attract off-course betting—and local PMH cards, which take only on-course bets. In a presentation to the France Galop committee this week, the annual cost of staging PMU Premium meetings in the regions was put at €46 million, while Compiegne, Dieppe and Cagnes-sur-Mer were venues highlighted as being in financial difficulty. For the PMU meetings, the chief finding of the Task Force has been the need to reduce the number of mixed meetings which feature both Flat and jump racing, or else one of those two disciplines combined with trotting. The rationale for moving away from such fixtures is the elevated cost of having two different populations of trainers, jockeys and stable staff on site on the same day, as well as the demands on grounds staff to prepare a racing surface suitable for more than one branch of the sport. In each region, some of the major tracks will move to a single vocation; for instance, in the east region, Nancy will move towards a concentration on jumping, while Strasbourg will become a specialist Flat track, with current fixtures moving between the two accordingly.