Ascot Racecourse

Prizemoney for Royal Ascot in 2021-set for June 15 to 19-will be £6-million, a 66% increase on 2020. Ascot Racecourse also revealed on Tuesday that the G1 King George VI and Queen Elizabeth S. in July will be worth £875,000, up from £400,000 in 2020 when purses took a massive hit in the midst of the pandemic. Guy Henderson, chief executive officer at Ascot Racecourse, said, "In 2020 we had hoped to offer record prize money of more than £8-million at the Royal Meeting. In the event the pandemic made...

Felicity Barnard has been named to the role of Ascot Commercial Director, the racecourse announced on Monday. Barnard, who will report to Ascot Chief Executive Guy Henderson, will be responsible for devising and implementing commercial strategy for in venue sales and marketing, partnerships, sponsorship, licencing, memberships and new income streams. Ascot Finance Director Ian McGregor is in charge of the racecourse's domestic and international broadcast, media and data rights while a review of how these areas should be developed is underway. Previously, Barnard spent four years as CEO of Tie...

Ascot Racecourse has said it does not expect crowds to return to pre-COVID levels before 2022, and in releasing its 2019 financial results on Wednesday painted a bleak financial picture for the next two years in the absence of continued government support. "Overall, in terms of our long-term financial flight path, we forecast that the Covid-19 pandemic will have set the business plan back at least three years," said Guy Henderson, chief executive officer of Ascot Racecourse. Ascot returned a net profit of £7.3-million last year and a rise in...

Virtual Live Racing, which is a type of virtual racing product that is based on past performance data from previously run real races utilising a racecourse's rich archive and intellectual property database, will launch at Ascot Racecourse, a UK first. The latest CGI technology will be used to create a fully immersive digital racing and betting experience of Ascot. The idea is that VLR's product will offer a no cost, risk free, revenue stream opportunity to racetracks to extend their digital brand distribution to access a lucrative tote betting market....

It's been the best part of three decades since Culture Vulture (Timeless Moment) strutted her stuff at the top table in Chris Wright's blue-and-yellow silks and the music supremo has found a jewel to match that luminary's achievements after David Menuisier incumbent Wonderful Tonight (Fr) (Le Havre {Ire}) backed up a career best in ParisLongchamp's G1 Prix de Royallieu earlier this month with a game victory in Saturday's G1 Qipco British Champions Fillies & Mares S. at Ascot. The bay sophomore was in receipt of a six-pound pull from her...

Not content to rest on her laurels, rider-of-the-moment Hollie Doyle claimed a career-best success when guiding last month's G1 Haydock Sprint Cup runner-up Glen Shiel (GB) (Pivotal {GB}) to a dramatic success in Saturday's Qipco British Champions Sprint S. at Ascot. Hambleton Racing Partnership's veteran chestnut, who had previously claimed a first pattern-race triumph in The Curragh's Aug. 8 G3 Phoenix Sprint S., broke like greased lightning from the gates and was in command under a tight hold until allowed a measure of rein at halfway. Looking certain to be...

Ascot's rain-affected British Champions Day opened with the £300,000 Qipco British Champions Long Distance Cup over the best part of two miles and it was Hollie Doyle, fresh from setting a record number of winners earlier in the week, who celebrated success with a wide-margin tally aboard Barbary Lions 5's 4-year-old gelding Trueshan (Fr) (Planteur {Ire}). The Alan King trainee's previous best came in July's Listed Tapster S. at Haydock and he earned his place in this line-up coming back off an eighth--behind the reopposing Fujaira Prince (Ire) (Pivotal {GB})--in...

As rain continued to pummel both Paris and parts of England on Saturday, Ascot's card which was set to feature the G3 Bengough S. and G3 Cumberland Lodge S.-including last year's unbeaten G1 St Leger winner Logician (GB) (Frankel {GB})-was cancelled. A Tweet from the course read: "Update--Following over 36mm rain since racing yesterday, today's meeting has been abandoned. The track is unsafe for racing due to waterlogging and false patches of ground."

ParisLongchamp warms up for Sunday's main event with a fascinating card on Saturday, but it is Newmarket's sole pattern race which steals the show with the G1 Kingdom of Bahrain Sun Chariot S. featuring a clutch of high-class milers. They are headed by the rising sensation Champers Elysees (Ire) (Elzaam {Aus}), who upstaged the re-opposing Peaceful (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) in the G1 Matron S. at Leopardstown last time on Sept. 12 and has subsequently prompted a purchase by Teruya Yoshida. Stepping up off a prior win in the G3 Fairy...

Jockey Club Racecourses had previously projected a loss of £75-million in 2020, but now says it expects losses to exceed initial estimates following the government's announcement on Tuesday that crowds will not be permitted at sporting venues for up to six months due to rising COVID-19 infection rates. JCR Group Chief Executive Nevin Truesdale said he is seeking further clarity from the government on how long such restrictions may be in place and what support they may offer in the meantime. "Organisations in the sport and events sector are facing...

Ascot Racecourse has engaged Total Performance Data as its tracking distribution partner to broaden the reach of its Longines tracking data. TPD currently provides live tracking data from 37 racecourses worldwide. Juliet Slot, chief commercial officer at Ascot, said, "With racing taking place behind closed doors, it's never been more important for the sport to offer the greatest possible insight and analysis for online or home viewing and TPD enable us to reach a wider audience with our Longines tracking data. With 37 racecourses installed worldwide and some impressive commercial...

Ascot Racecourse and Sky Sports Racing have extended their partnership to air Ascot's 25 annual fixtures to domestic pay TV and digital platforms until at least 2024. At The Races will continue to manage licensing and distribution of Ascot races for live streaming to UK betting operators under a separate long-term agreement. Juliet Slot, chief commercial officer at Ascot, said, "We have developed an excellent partnership with the whole team at Sky Sports Racing since re-joining the refreshed channel last year. The growth in their audiences across our time as...