HRI injects further €325,000 into point-to-point
Horse Racing Ireland is to inject a further €325,000 funding into the Irish National Hunt Steeplechase Committee for point-to-points racing in 2004.
This 44% rise will see the financial package afforded to point-to-point racing come in at €1.068m per year.
For the spring season of January to May, HRI will pay a further grant of €2,000 per fixture to each hunt hosting a point-to-point meeting.
A €4,000 grant will be made to any Hunt staging a second fixture during the autumn season.
These additional payments have been sanctioned in light of the growing operational and insurance costs faced by the hunts.
The higher autumn grants are designed to ensure that point-to-point tracks used more than once a year are repaired and maintained to the highest possible standard.
Welcoming this initiative, Roy Craigie, Senior Steward of the INHS Committee stated: “The INHS Committee is delighted at the approval of additional funding of €325,000 for Point-to-Points in 2004, which duly recognises the mounting costs being incurred by Hunts.”
Jason Morris, Director of Racing in HRI, added: “HRI is pleased to increase the total financial support for point-to-point racing by 44% from €743,000 to €1,068,000.
"This underlines HRI’s strong commitment towards this vital sector of the sport,” he added.
