IFHA

The Horseracing Integrity & Welfare Unit (HIWU) provided this Q&A with questions submitted by Craig Bandoroff of Denali Stud. Although I've read explanations and have had people try to explain it to me I still don't understand why we test to such a small level.  As I understand it a picogram is one-trillionth of a gram.  How can that have any affect on a 1200-lb horse?  Why do we test to such a small level?  Are we using the ARCI recommended guidelines? It is important to remember that a picogram...

Carl Hamilton, since 1994 the president of The Jockey Club Information Systems (TJCIS), has retired as of Dec. 31, 2022. Hamilton will remain in role as chairman of BloodHorse and will continue to represent The Jockey Club on a variety of national and international committees related to the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities (IFHA) and the Society of International Thoroughbred Auctioneers (SITA). Matt Iuliano will be nominated for election as president of TJCIS and continue as executive director and executive vice president of The Jockey Club. "Carl's leadership of TJCIS...

The in-person 2022 Longines World Racing Awards will be held at Banqueting House in London, England on Jan. 17, 2023, the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities (IFHA) announced on Friday. The 10th edition of the ceremony will honour the highest-rated horses in the 2022 Longines World's Best Racehorse Rankings as well as the Longines World's Best Horse Race. Connections of the winners will receive Longines timepieces. The Longines World's Best Racehorse Rankings are established by international handicappers according to the performance of the horses in top races. The highest-rated race...

The 56th International Federation of Horseracing Authorities (IFHA) Conference was held Monday in Paris and the focus was on key challenges and opportunities, including the issues of integrity and fan engagement, facing the industry around the globe. "Integrity lies at the foundation of our sport and must inform every decision that we make," said IFHA Chair Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges. "The pandemic has inherently changed the way that fans and punters enjoy and participate in horse racing. A good digital customer experience is key, and the general trend of digital evolution further...

The International Conference of Horseracing Authorities, organised by the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities (IFHA), will return as an in-person event in Paris, France on Oct. 3. Held virtually for the past two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the conference's topics to be covered include the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority (HISA) in the United States, broadening horse racing's appeal globally, addressing climate change through sport, and lessons learned from the pandemic. "As the first in-person conference in three years, this event convenes at a critical junction of our...

The Laboratory of Racing Chemistry, Japan (LRC) is now the sixth fully appointed IFHA Reference Laboratory following the approval of the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities (IFHA) Reference Laboratory Appointment Committee (RLAC). The LRC was granted a provisional appointment as an IFHA Reference Laboratory in July of 2021, and its on-site assessment took place in June of 2022. "I want to commend the Laboratory of Racing Chemistry for its hard work, diligence and patience in becoming an IFHA Reference Laboratory," said Reference Laboratory Appointment Committee (RLAC) Chair Andrew Harding. "This...

Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges was unanimously elected President of the International Horse Sports Confederation (IHSC) at the online IHSC General Assembly on Apr. 22. The third president of the organisation that was founded in 2013, he succeeds FEI President Ingmar De Vos. Engelbrecht-Bresges, who will serve a two-year term, said, "I am very grateful to be elected President of the IHSC and must pay tribute to Ingmar, whose leadership at the helm of the Confederation has been significantly important and impactful for global horse sport. "I would also like to pay tribute...

Dominic Gardiner-Hill, Head of Handicapping for the British Horseracing Authority (BHA), has succeeded Phil Smith as Co-Chairman of the Longines World's Best Racehorse Rankings Committee, announced during a meeting of the Executive Council of the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities (IFHA) Mar. 29. The IFHA Executive Council unanimously endorsed Gardiner-Hill's nomination by the European Pattern Committee (EPC). He joins Nigel Gray as Co-Chairman of the Committee. Smith served as Co-Chairman since 2014. Gardiner-Hill joined the BHA in 1993. After serving as the Deputy Head of Handicapping, Dominic took over as...

The International Horse Sports Confederation (IHSC) General Assembly has unanimously elected Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges as the new IHSC Vice-President. Engelbrecht-Bresges had previously served as the standing representative of the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities (IFHA) in the IHSC General Assembly. Also the Hong Kong Jockey Club (HKJC)'s Chief Executive Officer since 2007, Engelbrecht-Bresges is the Chair of the IFHA and the Chairman of the Asian Racing Federation (ARF). "Winfried's expertise in the horse racing industry has been of great value to the work of the IHSC, as is his commitment to...

Last year's GI Breeders' Cup Classic winner Knicks Go (Paynter) was named the Longines World's Best Racehorse of 2021 during a virtual ceremony of the Longines World Racing Awards presented from the National Horse Racing Museum in Newmarket, England on Tuesday. Also during the ceremony, the G1 Qatar Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe--won last year by Torquator Tasso (Ger) (Adlerflug {Ger})--was announced as the Longines World's Best Horse Race of 2021, and Ryan Moore was celebrated as the Longines World's Best Jockey. The 6-year-old Knicks Go earned a rating of...

The 2021 Longines World Racing Awards ceremony will be held virtually on Jan. 25 at 2 p.m. GMT. The show, which will be hosted by Francesca Cumani from the National Horse Racing Museum in Newmarket for the second straight year, will honour the Longines World's Best Racehorse, the Longines World's Best Horse Race and the Longines World's Best Jockey of 2021. Ryan Moore has already been revealed as last year's World's Best Jockey, while the other award winners will be revealed during the event. The IFHA's annual list of the...

The Longines World Racing Awards will be held virtually for the second straight year on Jan. 25. The Longines World's Best Racehorse and World's Best Horse Race will be revealed during the ceremony, and Ryan Moore, the 2021 Longines World's Best Jockey, will be honoured. The ninth edition of the ceremony will be released on multiple digital platforms including the social media accounts of Longines and the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities, which collaborate to organise the event.