Pune season from Thursday

July 23, 2014 05:49 pm | Updated 05:52 pm IST - Pune:

The 2014 Pune racing season will begin from July 24 and end on October 26, according to the prospectus by the RWITC.

There will be 28 race days during the season. The prize money is expected to be around Rs. 11.5 crore as against Rs. 8.5 crore last year. It is probably the highest prize money for a monsoon racing centre in India.

Mr. Vivek Jain, Chairman, RWITC, while briefing the media on Wednesday said “the RWITC continues to lead the way in attracting record sponsorships and the coming season will be no exception. Contributions of over Rs. 1.15 crore is on par with last year, and virtually every weekend will feature a sponsored/graded race as has been the norm for the past several seasons.”

“The Pune season’s only two Grade I races remain The Nanoli Stud Pune Derby and The Signature Indian St. Leger (Gr.1). The Pune Derby has become synonymous with Nanoli Stud who would be sponsoring Western India’s first classic for the new crop for a record 18th year in a row. The Dhunjibhoy family will as always, also sponsor the Spring Million on the same, as an added bonus. The Derby weekend will also feature the hugely popular Oktoberfest, for the fifth year running thanks to the munificence of the Indo-German Chamber and its associates,” he stated.

Mr. Jain added that “the newest development is the conversion of the entire race track into a monsoon track with proper cambering. It would have been difficult to kick off due to the scanty rains but since it israining last few days it would help the monsoon track.  We need the support of the fraternity to give the only all-monsoon track in India a chance to stabilise. Another feature will be a new area for the first enclosure of nearly 6,000 sq.ft, situated in proximity of the Food Court, and new Tote counters. A large LED screen will be positioned in front of the public stand.” The racing dates:July: 24 & 25. August: 2, 3, 9, 10, 15, 17, 23, 24, 30 & 31. September: 6, 7, 13, 14, 20, 21, 27 & 28. October: 3, 4, 11, 12, 17, 18, 25 & 26.

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