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Pardubice: New structure in the racecourse
Pardubice: General Meeting supports the Town
(19 May, from Paddock Revue Czech language site)
An extraordinary general meeting of Dostihovy spolek in Pardubice has unanimously approved an increase in the capital stock in favour of one shareholder, precluding the first option of all other shareholders. In this way the Town of Pardubice has gained a majority shareholding in the company. On account of the financial problems of Dostihovy spolek, this procedure was also approved by the second largest shareholder (over 30%), Czech-born Swiss medical doctor Martin Vokal. The extraordinary general meeting removed the present vice-chairman Petr Pucandl from the board and voted chief executive officer Jiri Kunat to be a board member. He immediately became vice-chairman of the board. The extraordinary general meeting was in reaction to the financial problems of Dostihovy spolek and marks the beginning of an attempt to revive the financial management of the company.
Pardubice: Big Race entries
Entries for Velka Pardubicka 2006
When entries for the 116th Ceska pojistovna Velka Pardubicka closed at midday on May 18th, forty seven horses were on the list. Twelve of them are horses trained abroad – maybe 13, as Klip disappeared from the Czech radar screen in 1999 and may have been performing elsewhere.
The leading Czech contenders clearly include 2003 and 2004 winner Registana, and 2002 and 2005 winner Maskul, as well as Decent Fellow, who has been placed in each of the last 4 runnings of the race. Retriever, second in 2004, is there. Not to forget that Laneret finished 5th in 2004 and 3rd in 2005.
Newsletter - May II Edition
I am making an early start to the mid-May newsletter, while memories of the opening race day at Pardubice are still fresh in my memory. In a couple of days the entries for the Velka Pardubicka will be announced, and then it will be time to write them up and post them on the web site.
Monday May 8th is a holiday here to celebrate the liberation of the country after the second world war. This used to be celebrated on May 9th, when the Russians took control. Before that, in the western parts of Bohemia, right up to the western suburbs of Prague, Patton’s army came in first. As in the case of Berlin, it had been agreed that the Russians would liberate Prague. After 1989, the public holiday was moved forward to May 8th.
Pardubice: Whats going on with the big race organizers?
Content is taken from Paddock Revue magazine, May 2006 edition
DOSTIHOVY SPOLEK AT THE CROSSROADS
When the editor of Paddock Revue invited me to write an analysis of what is going on in Dostihovy spolek in Pardubice, I hesitated. I have been striding through the world of horseracing with Dostihovy spolek almost since it was set up. I consider those involved to be, if not good friends, at least good acquaintances. That is why I hesitated with my response. But then I said to myself that only friends can look each other in the eye and tell the truth, strengthen their friendship by doing so, and continue to hold together. I am therefore presenting an X-ray photograph of the present and future of one of the two biggest organizers of horseracing in the Czech Republic.
Newsletter - May edition
I have just come from the season opening press conference of Dostihovy spolek, organizers of racing at Pardubice, held in Wenceslas Square, in Prague, right opposite the tent in which Prague Velka Chuchle racecourse is advertising itself. If you are in the centre of Prague between now and May10th, you can go to the tent, near the top of the square, gather information and ride the simulator, which allegedly shows what it is like to ride a racehorse.
At the press conference, Mirek Petran, Chairman of Dotihovy spolek, organizers of racing at Pardubice, apologized for the cancellation of the new season-opening April meeting due to the state of the course after the exceptionally long and hard winter. An April meeting of oval track steeplechases, hurdles and flat races will be attempted again next year.
Organisers of Racing at Warsaw go bankrupt
The crisis at Warsaw-Služewiec racecourse, the headquarters of Polish racing, has reached a head. According to an article on April 22nd in Žycie Warszawy newspaper, the property of the previous organizers of racing at Warsaw (STWK) is to be auctioned off on April 27th, because the company has gone bankrupt. The land on which the racecourse is built belongs to the state, so that it cannot by law be sold to the Polish Jockey Club. Only STWK’s property is to be auctioned off, i.e., the starting boxes, the video studio equipment, and the decorations (original canvases from the first half of the 20th century) and the VIP areas in the grandstand. This should bring in about 800 thousand zloty, but the debts run in to the millions... For example, there is the prize money still owing to the owners of successful horses from the second half of the 2003 season. The article blames above all the state officials in the ministry responsible for overseeing horse racing in Poland for this grim situation.
Newsletter - April edition No. 2
Let me begin by admitting that I have made some errors in earlier newsletters. In my comments on the Monolit affair (April edition), I should have said that legal proceedings had already begun. The original appeal made by Monolit’s owner was on the grounds that the punishment (disqualification in a big race) was disproportionate to the (minor?) offence (putting up a jockey who should not have ridden because he is also a trainer), and not on the grounds that the protest had been lodged too late. Also, the owner is Jozef Rosina, not Josef Rosina (Josef is normally the Czech spelling, while Slovaks are called Jozef). There will be a meeting of the Central European turf authorities in Prague at the end of May. The discussions will include the rejection by Ebreichsdorf racecourse of Jozef Rosina’s entries for the Central European Breeders Cup. Racing people sitting together should be able to resolve such problems better, and certainly much more cheaply, than a court of law.
Torlus remains unbeaten in five starts
With a delay of a week, Czech flat racing season has been opened. Czech Miler of 2005 Torlus made sensational reappearance and his winning strike is now 5 straight victories. He beat 2005 Czech Derby winner Ready for Life together with the "cream of Czech older milers in his reapperance on Sunday in a big style.
No racing in Prague and Pardubice
Czech racing season begins with trouble. Weather was a key factor in cancelling of the first race meetings in Prague (scheduled on Apr 2nd) and in Pardubice (Apr 22nd).
Newsletter-April Edition
March 27th, 2006 – the first day of what I would call decent weather since before Christmas. Even my skiing colleagues admit that the snow and ice went on for too long. And now there are only 6 days until the scheduled beginning of the racing season at Velka Chuchle on Sunday April 2nd. March 28th, 2006 – a rainy day – we will be lucky if the course is fit for racing on Sunday!
A few days ago I went to the Open Day at the Blue Blue Sky stables at Dymokury. About 60 people were there. They saw 12 Polish-bred two-year-olds, all of them available for sale. Also on show were the stable's resident stallion, Wallace, and several foals, yearlings and two-year-olds by Exaltation, Wallace and Gay Devil, as well as some racehorses and brood mares that were available for sale. Among the visitors were trainers Roman Vitek, V. Fedorowicz and Juergen Albrecht, as well as Swiss Fans owners Marco Lehmann and Elsbeth Ullius. Trainer Pavel Kinsky and his staff, including assistant trainer Libor Sindar, stable jockey Jaroslav Donoval and Helena Donovalova, were good and attentive hosts. Two horses were sold and one was leased, and seven remained in Dymokury and are available for reasonable offers. Blue Blue Sky stable owner Chris Richner was pleased to have a good number of visitors on a rainy afternoon, and some sales and expressions of interest, but was disappointed that few stayed on for the Led Zeppelin Revival concert at the Rock Factory in Dymokury, another Chris Richner enterprise. Chris and I reckon that both Robert Plant and Jimmie Page would have difficulty getting into the Led Zeppelin Revival line-up. They would surely have appreciated the compliment paid to them before a small audience on a Saturday evening in east Bohemia.