The 39th Asian Racing Conference (ARC) closed in Melbourne, Australia last night (Friday, 17 February) with Asian Racing Federation (ARF) Chairman Mr. Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges describing the conference as a “huge success.”

Praising the “exceptional job” of conference host Racing Victoria and the ARC Organising Committee, Mr. Engelbrecht-Bresges said the ARC had been a “real eye-opener” after more than 700 delegates from 35 countries attended 11 business programme sessions covering a variety of topics vital to horseracing’s future.

“What an inspiring and thought-provoking week we have had,” Mr. Engelbrecht Bresges, the Hong Kong Jockey Club’s Chief Executive Officer, said at the closing ceremony crowned by the official handover of the ARC flag to the Japan Racing Association, who will host the 40th ARC in Sapporo, Hokkaido in 2024.

“On Wednesday, I spoke about racing’s landscape and the nine key challenges we face as industry, ranging from industry fragmentation to ageing customer base sustainability and human resources.

“There is no doubt we have significant challenges and we have to break barriers. We have to overcome industry fragmentation, we have to collaborate more, we have to use a different perspective to become customer-centric by having an outside-in than an inside-out view to grow our sport for a sustainable future.

“Our objective for this conference was to be an eye-opener, to be thought-provoking, to be inspiring and to be engaging. We wanted to identify what we have to urgently address in the short terms, what we can do to grow the business of racing and what we have to look at which could be game changers, especially when it comes to securing our future.

Mr Engelbrecht-Bresges said some of the conference speakers had “opened our eyes to what many of us probably never thought possible in terms of what racing can offer its fans. But now we have seen racing’s future and we must embrace it. We must lean in. And we must act now,” he said.

“NFTs (Non-Fungible Tokens) and Web 3 can be an absolute game-changer for racing. This technology could open up racing to a whole new audience of all ages, from all countries, which can only help grow the sport globally.

“It will never replace the excitement of watching a horse fly down the home straight. But it will add to the experience of racing and make it more accessible for all; especially for Gen Z it is a necessary condition to be relevant at all. And that can only be a good thing.

“Our eyes have also been opened to a world of possibilities for growing the ownership base and enhancing the experience owners receive. And while that means bringing new and younger people in to share in the thrill of racing, we shouldn’t forget about our existing owners who will be our sport’s biggest promoters to future generations.”

Addressing mental health issues, Mr. Engelbrect-Bresges said: “Much like our thinking on horse welfare being a lifetime proposition, racing must also change its approach to looking after its people.

“Glen Boss gave us a harrowing example of what can happen if we don’t get it right. We must all make a commitment to improve in this space – to ensure the mental and emotional wellbeing of our participants at all stages of their careers.”

Marking the first ARC since Cape Town in 2020, the conference featured a string of world-class speakers and panellists over the past three days, drawing praise from Mr. Engelbrecht-Bresges for conference host Racing Victoria and the ARC Organising Committee.

“Having talked to many of you, this conference has been a huge success and has been seen as extremely important in the eyes of the participants. None of this would have been possible without the exceptional work done by our host, Racing Victoria (and) the ARC Organising Committee,” Mr. Engelbrecht-Bresges said.

 “I would also like to extend my sincere gratitude to all of our 50 speakers. They have given us their time and shared with us such fascinating and thought-provoking insights. Now we must run with them,” Mr. Engelbrecht-Bresges said.

“And I am sure you will join with me in expressing our collective appreciation to David Eades for his skilful and good-humoured moderation of the conference over the last three days.

“It has been a great pleasure to see you all here in Melbourne, and to be part of this extraordinary Asian Racing Conference.”