Record 5,000 attend first Sunday races

November 1994

The weather has often spoiled Wexford Races, but even the bad weather of last Sunday couldn’t spoil the party for the Executive of Bettyville as they hosted their first-ever Sunday meeting.

Last year’s proposed Sunday fixture became a casualty of the industrial relations problems in the racing industry, but there was no stopping this year’s event.

Full credit to all associated with the course for putting on a programme which would have done any of the premier tracks in the country proud. The card included Wexford’s richest-ever race, the Talbot Hotel Handicap Steeplechase of £12,000. The race produced a thrilling finish with Slaney Bacon and Sullane River battling it out to the end.

In the end, even a photo could not separate the two and the race was declared a dead heat. Ironically, Slaney Bacon runs in the colours of the Talbot Hotel, so the sponsors got back a large portion of their investment.

Meanwhile, the opening race of the day provided Clonroche-born trainer, Aidan O’Brien, with an important winner, to take him closer to breaking the all-time Irish record.

Overall on Sunday, there was a very strong betting market, with £50,000 being wagered on the Tote alone. This compares with £100,000 bet on the Tote in Galway on the same day, and the Galway track is four times larger than Wexford.

The attendance on Sunday was in the region of 5,000 – which is another record for the track.

The bars remained closed on Sunday however, because of an ancient law that meant an extension to cover the afternoon was not possible. However, all that will change when the new racing authority is up and running early in the new year.

The shutters now come down at the track and racing will resume next March.