The latest signs are positive for those who want to keep the site as a racecourse but all sides say the end is not in sightKempton is not yet saved from development but campaigners to keep it as a racecourse got some more good news on Wednesday. The local council has not included the track among sites proposed for development in a consultation launched this week. Related: BHA plans stricter syndicate rules after Supreme Horse Racing Club ssaga Newbury Continue reading...
Switching the all-weather Flat fixtures from the profitable Surrey course to Newmarket could be the real prize in controversial schemeWhen the Jockey Club announced last week that its 10-year plan involved the sale of Kempton Park for housing to help fund a new all-weather course in Newmarket, its officials bent over backwards to insist that the decision had been taken with a heavy heart.Roger Weatherby, the senior steward, talked of showing “leadership with the assets we have” and taking “tough decisions to help our sport keep moving forward”. The loss of Kempton, he stressed, was painful, but the only way to raise £100m or more to put towards a bright new future. Related: Kempton the victim as Jockey Club puts...
The proposed loss of the iconic course where Arkle, Desert Orchid and Kauto Star made their names has provoked astonishment and anger from jump-racing fans. A concerted protest campaign can be expectedThe Jockey Club achieved the impossible on Tuesday morning. In fact, it did so twice before lunchtime. First, having spent as long as any of us can remember insisting that British racing’s rich heritage is “priceless” and safe in its hands, it put a price on it, as it announced a proposal to sell Kempton Park to a housing developer. Then, as news of its proposal spread, it managed to do a second extraordinary thing: unite a notoriously disjointed sport in almost unanimous opposition to its plans, for Kempton...