The relentless worldwide advance of big-spending China Horse Club shows no sign of easing off
The China Horse Club is a big-spending club. Racing is cynical because of its nature.
Most trainers and jockeys flatter to deceive. Racing people hate to seem gullible. The relentless worldwide advance of big-spending China Horse Club shows no sign of easing off.
The China Horse Club is a case in point.
The Chinese government refused to allow betting in China. The new plan involved racing not just in the country, but also in other countries. It was designed to appeal to the new rich who want to show off their wealth. Teo Ah Khing, the Harvard-educated Chinese Malaysian who conceived, founded and chairs the CHC, is the engine behind the scheme. The Chinese economy suffered a 40% drop last summer. However, Teos claims that none of his members lost money. He is adamant that the organisation did not lose money during that period. There are many Chinese billionaires. China has overtaken the U.S. and is about to overtake the UK.
Teo and the China Horse Club hosted its third annual racing gala in Wuhan on September 19th. The first gale was held in Hohhot in Inner Mongolia in 2013. It was not as successful as the second one, held at Nine Dragons Hill Polo Club, near Shanghai in October 2014.
The third race meeting was held at a purpose-built racecourse in Wuhan. It was attended by 13,000 people, but it was as grand an event as any laid on by racing jurisdictions anywhere around the world. The event was organized by the China Horse Club. The owners were celebrating their victory with jubilation. Grandees from around racing world were in attendance. There was a gala evening in a huge civic centre. They were entertained with fashion shows, dance troupes, Shaolin monks and Shaolins.
The China Horse Club is big-spending and has 127 members. Teo didn't run many of the Club’s best Chinese-trained horses to give the other 127 Chinese horse clubs a chance to compete.
The China Horse Club has had its 100th winner worldwide. Beat The Drum, one of three ex-Coolmore horses sent to be trained in the U.S.A. after having raced successfully in China, won at Santa Anita. Dissident, a four-time G1 winner, was crowned Australia’s Horse of the Year in October. The CHC is a consistently big buyer at horse sales worldwide and spent £12.3 million at Tattersalls in Oct. Sheikh Fahad is one its partners. The members will be able to enjoy their own private resort, Alpina, in Swiss Alps this winter.
