General News
29 October, 2020
Racing club soldiers on with meeting
IT may be without the glitz and glamour of previous meetings, but this year’s Mortlake Cup still looms an important event according to club officials.
IT may be without the glitz and glamour of previous meetings, but this year’s Mortlake Cup still looms an important event according to club officials.
For the first time in its 151 year history, the Mortlake Racing Club’s feature event will be run without a crowd or owners in attendance.
While disappointed the community could not be trackside, Mortlake Racing Club president Bruce Redpath said he was “extremely proud” of the way the club’s staff, committee and sponsors proceeded with its commitment to stage its annual meeting.
“The Mortlake Racing Club certainly appreciates the support of the community and our sponsors even though we are racing without a crowd,” he said.
“Unfortunately our big community event is not going to happen like normal but we look forward to having the community’s support for next year’s cup which we believe will go back to Derby Day.
“It’s the main event for the Mortlake community now and the racing club is looking forward to providing a wonderful 2021 Mortlake Cup.”
Mr Redpath said while there would be no marquees set up for the day, the club’s committee and volunteers had still worked hard to prepare its facility for the annual event.
He thanked them for their tireless effort, as well as that of local tradesmen in the lead-up to Sunday’s race day.
“Because we’re a racing club we still wanted to race with Country Racing Victoria to provide races for the lower benchmark horses and the committee has still prepared the track and surrounds up to its normal standards,” Mr Redpath said.
“The racing club, with the assistance of the racecourse reserve committee, has been very proactive in undertaking improvements to the venue including the concreting of the betting ring and new disabled compliant access to the main building.
“There has also been various repairs and improvements undertaken to the horse stalls and administration buildings.”
Locals can still enjoy the day’s racing from the comfort of their homes, with racing.com (channel 68) to broadcast the event.
