To those visiting Hong Kong for the first time to take in HKIR week, these might be a few days of a Big Day Out and punting, but it’s much more than that.
Horse racing is the city’s favourite pastime next to having dim sum or Char Siu Fan or attacking a hotel buffet table and building pagodas with food- curries with noodles with cake with cold cuts and as many oysters and lobsters one can pile on top of it all.
It was interesting listening this morning to a couple of guys on one of those racing and radio channels from Oz who are in Hong Kong for the first time talking about a local punter refusing to get into the elevator with them because one of was wearing a green shirt- bad feng shui if hoping to win.
There are many of these “traditional” quirks from the days of yore.
There was the time when a jockey going through a bad trot was persuaded to have their heads shaved to get rid of the bad luck and keep their rides.
A caller wanted to know how the “Hongkongese” were.
One sees a steep learning curve ahead.
At Happy Valley racecourse yesterday, the stage was set for the Longines International Jockeys Challenge, one of the most popular days in the Hong Kong racing calendar.
Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges, the CEO of the Hong Kong Jockey Club, was smiling and pumping fists with anyone within pumping distance, and, quite naturally, had ensured that everything would go according to script and with no surprises.
He had nothing to worry about, which meant that his troops could relax though one is never sure when a grenade might be thrown their way.
The press conference the day before had gone off without a hitch.
The riders competing during HKIR week were there for the obligatory photo session wearing pipe lined jackets that brought back memories of the television series “The Love Boat”.
On a beautiful Wednesday night in Happy Valley at the most unique racetrack in the world, there was something not felt in the new Hong Kong for over five years- a buzz and a pulse.
Hong Kong Belongers will understand what I mean and how this wasn’t going to be another Groundhog’s Day.
This was kinda like how Stella Got Her Groove Back and Tom Cruise jumping on Oprah’s couch to show his love for Katie Holmes, who eventually escaped from him and Scientology with daughter Suri.
Anyway…
This was the annual Hong Kong IJC night highlighted by four designated races featuring jockeys representing Japan, France, New Zealand, Great Britain, Ireland, Australia and Hong Kong.
Personally speaking, this country representation of the competing jockeys is a little odd— but whatever.
This night was a tasty appetiser of things to come on Sunday afternoon at Shatin when the big guns in horse racing- equine and human- will compete for Group One titles, pride, honour and huge prize money.
These IJC nights have always been about fun, some ‘live’ music, playing to win, the weirdest conspiracy theories, interactivity, engagement, the post race party at the HKJC venue Adrenaline and recently renamed The Beat- guess it’s better than The Funk.
It’s also about what happened after the races at places like dragon-i, the fabulous BBoss, the more low market Escape, Amazonia and the very surreal club Players, where everything started at 3am and ended around 4pm.
Those days really should have been a movie. It would have made The Hangover series look like Bambi.
This particular IJC night was buzzing with excitement, and some who have never been to Happy Valley were inhaling the newness of it all.
A friend who lives in Hong Kong and has been to many of these nights- those original Happy Wednesday nights in a very happy Hong Kong-recalled fondly “The Nader Years” and the obligatory firework displays, and the year it was decided by someone to invite around a dozen young American social media “influencers” to report on HKIR week.
They never returned.
We live and learn and move on.
That was then, and this year’s night got off to a good start with champion Hong Kong Jockey Zac Purton winning the first on the race favourite followed by a terrific ride by Mickael Barzalona in race two, and Hong Kong born and very popular Keith Yeung overhauling the world class Hugh Bowman in the next.
It was really nice- yes, nice- to see Keith make the time to personally hand over his goggles to a fan, sign a few autographs and give Caspar Fownes, whose runner he had just beaten, a big hug.
For me, this was the highlight of the night.
Let’s not forget that Cas was one of the few trainers who had supported Keith when he was going through a particularly lean trot.
Let’s also give the DJ at the Beer Garden a hug- but for very different reasons.
Someone really should have thought about inviting former jockey, good guy and very good part time EDM DJ Olivier Doleuze to make a cameo DOOF DOOF appearance.
These three races were part of the undercard before the first of the IJC Challenges took place as the fourth race of the night and was taken out by Sergeant Pepper and a very strong ride by Mickael Barzalona representing France.
The second in the Challenge series, a Class 4 race, went to “The World’s Best Jockey” James McDonald for New Zealand on the Douglas Whyte trained Prince Alex.
Britain’s Hollie Doyle called on her super powers to win the third leg of the Challenge on Soleil Fighter for David Hayes. What an amazing pocket rocket, she is.
With him also very very easily winning the last leg of the IJC, this year’s Hong Kong International Jockeys Challenge champion was Mickael Barzalona.
It was a nearly fine night out though perhaps missing the vibe and energy of the Hong Kong some of us know and love and is part of our DNA.
Then again, the world has changed and us with it and new priorities having rolled in.
Still, this is Hong Kong, and now referred to more and more as Hong Kong, China and like almost every city in the world getting used to the new abnormal in the post Covid era.
Roll on Sunday at Shatin and those thundering hooves, watching the superstars of horse racing for around four hours and cheering on Team Hong Kong and Ka Ying Rising.
Having said this, there’s so much horse racing can and should do to expand its aging customer base in what is a rollercoaster economy.
There’s an urgent need to petition governments who gain taxes on wagering to drop the Warning signs to something still not seen as a sport by millions.
With this dropped, the mainstream media will see and help promote horse racing with new eyes- and in different languages- only if horse racing has more to offer than the “punt” and communicating with tweets to the same old same old via X about the same old same old.
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