World Trotting Conference opens in France
June 11, 2013,by John Pawlak, the U.S. Trotting Association
Paris, France — Problems facing the Standardbred industry, seen by many to be opportunities to change and grow, are among the topics that will be discussed at the biennial World Trotting Conference, which opened here Tuesday morning (June 11).
Delegates from 19 countries have convened to hear presentations from regulators, marketers and other experts from a number of racing- and breeding-related organizations, in what has become the leading opportunity for an exchange of information since the first such conference was convened in the United States in 1969.
The opening presentation was made by Dominique de Bellaigue, president of Le Trot, the governing body of racing and breeding in France and the host of this year’s World Trotting Conference.
De Bellaigue revealed that the work of a committee comprised of all sectors of the French industry would be revealed later this month, and thereby set the framework for the future direction of racing and breeding in his country, and he also challenged countries around the world to work to influence elected and appointed officials who regulate the sport.
“There can be no racing or breeding without a strong political will. I believe we (the nations attending the conference) should join to establish a worldwide political network to ensure wagering contributes at least eight percent of its revenues to support the jobs our industry provides,” Bellaigue said.
The individual harness racing countries in Europe have been nearly unanimous in their opposition to fixed-odds and exchange wagering, which they believe actually drain wagering revenues from the sport because of the low amounts they pay into purses due to their slim net margins while they compete with more traditional forms of wagering that pay higher amounts into the sport.
The delegates spent the afternoon in various committee sessions delving into topics such as marketing, drug testing, animal welfare and racing and wagering, and on Tuesday evening will share a “busman’s holiday” by enjoying the races at l’Hippodrome Paris-Vincennes — the suburban Paris racetrack famed as the home of the Prix d’Amerique, and the one that will host the final heat of the 2013 World Driving Championship this coming Saturday.
The World Trotting Conference will continue on Wednesday and will conclude this coming Saturday.
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- Television and promotion of racing discussed at World Trotting Conference (Thursday, June 13, 2013)
Discussion of television and technology’s positions in racing and the promotion of racing and racetracks shared the spotlight on the third day of the World Trotting Conference.
- Medication and breeding discussed at World Trotting Conference (Friday, June 14, 2013)
The next-to-last session of the 2013 World Trotting Conference was given over to roundtable discussions of medication and animal health and genetics and breeding, featuring some of Europe and the world’s top researchers and regulators.
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The 2013 World Trotting Conference came to a close on Saturday, with delegates approving committee reports and the date and place of the 2015 Conference and World Driving Championship being set.