No Australian Horses for HK International Races

The Hong Kong Jockey Club has pulled the plug on efforts to allow Australian-based horses to compete in the Longines Hong Kong International Races Dec. 9 at Sha Tin racecourse.

The HKJC had been negotiating with the Australian Department of Agriculture and Water Resources to find a temporary solution to an ongoing dispute that has effectively halted movement of horses between the jurisdictions.

Andrew Harding, executive director of racing for the HKJC, said negotiations have been conducted in an atmosphere of goodwill and might eventually have succeeded.

"Our assessment is that we are reaching the point where the trainers and owners need to know unequivocally whether their horses could return directly to Australia, and unfortunately that certainty is not yet able to be provided," Harding said.

"In the circumstances, we believe that it is in the best interests of the connections of the horses that we make the call now that we will not be proceeding any further with establishing special arrangements for Australian-based runners," he concluded.

The Australian government has banned import of horses directly from Hong Kong, expressing concern that the movement of horses between Hong Kong and the HKJC's massive new training facility on the Chinese mainland could present a health threat to horse populations.

The HKJC disputes that suggestion, citing the approved biosecurity corridor between its two facilities which isolates its horses from other equine populations during journeys back and forth. Australia is the only jurisdiction with outstanding issues concerning the arrangement.

Hoping for a solution to the travel ban, Australian connections nominated 24 horses, including 15 group 1 winners, to the four group 1 races comprising the HKIR, seven more than in 2017. In all, 191 horses from 12 racing jurisdictions have been entered for the event.