Try not taking the breathe away from the breathe taking sport of horse racing in Pakistan
As is the case with all the other sectors and industries, Pakistani horse racing industry has also fallen victim to the prevalent economic scenario of the country, that takes its roots from the political and social turmoil as well.
It is reflective from the fact that the Lahore Racing Club had to cut down the number of races in a week from two to just one.
Lahore stands out to be the second largest hub for equine sports after Karachi, and it is putting in all the sincere efforts for the sake of giving the sport a chance to survive.
It's an employment for many, such as the breeders, trainers, jockeys, clubs, stud-farms and the book keepers as well.
However, affording the sport itself is becoming an issue due to the brutally restrictive economic conditions in the country.
As if dealing with all the other miseries did not suffice, now there are people in the horse racing industry who are up to fraudulent activities as they are getting such horses entered in thoroughbred races that do not have the proper pedigree and thus, are not entitled to race.
Identifying a few is possible, but considering the level at which this is being done, it is impossible to catch, correct and stop every individual.
The sad part is that not only the horse but the trust with the trainer, owner and the jockey suffers and hinders as well.
A case reported was of an owner, Shabbir Ahmad, with a leading and successful trainer, Rashid Latif, importing an English horse, that was registered in a race with an unknown mare pedigree.
The owner was blacklisted by the club and the trainer’s license was withdrawn.
Unfortunately, from the number of horses that race each day, there is a significant amount of those that come from an unknown pedigree as compared to the thoroughbreds that are bred and trained for a specific purpose.
The sport suffering because of recession is no excuse for tampering with the quality of the races by inducting horses of bogus pedigree.
It is an industry that at the end of the day will serve the interests of these very people, only if they are at the least, fair and sincere towards it.
The event at the Lahore Race Club was equivalent to a New Year’s gift for the audience of Lahore.
The event featured three and four-year-old thoroughbreds, participating and turning it into a memorable spectacle by showcasing speed, strength and stamina through the track that was highly thrilling for the audience.
The event was worthwhile for the time, energy and money spent on it. Besides this it boosted the spirits of the trainers and owners who felt encouraged, motivated and confident of the efforts that they had put in, and further inspired them for future events as well.
For the year 2011, Syed Ismail Shah was entitled as the leading owner, while M. Rafiq K was recognised as a successful trainer and Ghulam Shabbir received the honour of being the most outstanding jockey.
Two prom inent families in the Pakistani horse racing industry are the Pagaro family and the Leghari family. The latter has not been actively involved since quite a while now.
Boosting the sport will also demand efforts from the family fronts that have been into horse racing for a while now.
The people of Pakistan need a breakthrough from the vicious monotony that they find impossible to escape from.
They are willing to pay for this source of entertainment, thus recognising it as an opportunity, the governing bodies of the sport should put in serious efforts to sustain it and try their level best to encourage and improve its status.
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