OFF THE RECORD #66

Racing 4 All
The Changing Face of South African Racehorse Ownership

Above: Dayalan Chinsammy, inspired by racing and its people (Photo: Candiese Lenferna)

The late entrepreneur and racehorse owner Hassen Adams dedicated his 2011 J&B Met victory with Past Master to the Indian community, declaring, “For the first time, we were able to win a race like this. It’s been 150 years since the arrival of Indians in South Africa - we must make a statement. Indians own many horses and are major punters. Without us, there would be no horse racing.”

A lifelong advocate for transforming the racing industry, Hassen Adams would have been proud of the statement made by Indian owners at Turffontein on Classic Day last Saturday. Seven of the ten races on the card - including all three Grade 1 events - were won by horses owned, either fully or in partnership, by Indian individuals.

Dayalan Chinsammy, who holds shares in three of Saturday’s winners - including Listed Storm Bird Stakes winner, Charming Cheetah and Grade 1 winners, Fiery Pegasus and Confederate, said that he was over the moon with a “blessed” day at the races.

Above: Fiery Pegasus and connections after SA Classic (photo: Candiese Lenferna)

Chinsammy said: “Years ago there were only a handful of Indian owners but now there are a lot of us getting involved. We love racing and betting. I think the new people coming into racing are satisfied with the changes that were made at political and corporate levels to accommodate people of colour.

“I’m seeing a surge of Indian individuals, including young people, entering racing. Some time ago the track was dead, it’s now lively again and we have our people participating with great enthusiasm. On the top floor of the private suites, Indian owners have secured boxes 17, 18 and 20 for themselves, friends and clients. On race days those facilities are full of spirited racing fans.”

Above: Charming Cheetah with Trevalen and Mrs Pillay (left), Stinky Pooe, Jomo Tshabalala and Neo Pooe (Photo: Candiese Lenferna)

Colin Gordon, Chief Operating Officer of 4Racing, also highlighted the involvement of black owners in the Listed Storm Bird Stakes winner, Charming Cheetah, and Grade 1 winner, Fiery Pegasus. He remarked: “Owner Stinky Pooe was on course to lead in Charming Cheetah and attorney Bafana Mncube was a member of the large procession for Fiery Pegasus, celebrating his first Grade 1 winner. This demonstrates that 4Racing has achieved a measure of diversity in ownership in our racing regions, which is truly encouraging. Racehorse enthusiasts from diverse backgrounds are joining forces for greater buying power - and they’re reaping the rewards of their investments.”

4Racing views transformation as a crucial step in developing a high-quality racing product that can be appreciated and enjoyed by all sectors of South African society. Chief Executive Fundi Sithebe expressed her delight at Saturday’s results but emphasised that much more work remains. She noted that true diversity cannot be achieved by merely meeting arbitrary targets, and reaffirmed the company’s commitment to driving meaningful transformation in the sport.

Sithebe commented: “If we were to measure our progress in transformation and ownership on a scale of 1 to 10, I’d say we’ve moved from a 1 to a 3. It’s a good start, but not good enough. We’ll continue working diligently to make further meaningful strides.”

Sithebe said that she’d met Bafana Mncube and his wife, Kgaladi, by chance while on holiday in Amsterdam. “Bafana knew absolutely zero about racing. Back in South Africa, I invited him to the racecourse on a day when I had a runner myself. He enjoyed the experience, later bought a share of Fiery Pegasus. He has loved this exciting journey ever since, so much so they now also own shares in more than 20 horses!”

Advocacy, Sithebe emphasised, is essential to attracting new owners to the sport. She explained: “When you own a horse or a share in one, you have the opportunity to give friends and acquaintances an authentic racing experience - and I believe that is vitally important. As racehorse owners looking to promote ownership, we often overlook what’s right in front of us. If we want the sport to grow and thrive, it’s our responsibility to invite and entertain friends on race days. That personal touch makes all the difference. I remember when Bafana came to the track for the first time - he was absolutely stunned.”

The promotion of racehorse ownership within the black community has been addressed with limited success. In a 2024 interview with Off The Record, Stinky Pooe stated that, in his view, more active participation in racehorse ownership is inextricably linked to economic growth and prosperity, both of which are currently at a low point.

Sithebe acknowledged this challenge but did not see it as an insurmountable problem. She said: “We have a sizeable black population in the middle class - there is money around. If you attend the Hollywoodbets Durban July, the WSB Cape Met, or the Betway Summer Cup, that is plain to see. And if you visit areas of entertainment, there is ample evidence of high-end lifestyles. Our task is to get these people to invest a proportion of their disposable income in racing. We are looking at ways to reach them with more focused marketing campaigns and promotions.”

Sithebe said the ‘360° experience’ is central to this approach. “A potential new owner is far more likely to invest if he or she is exposed to all aspects of this multi-faceted industry. This includes the glitz and glamour seen from the grandstand, standing in the parade ring with jockeys, witnessing the start of a race, and visiting a training stable to see horses put through their paces. They need to get up close - touch a horse, speak to a trainer, and observe how grooms feed and care for their runners. There is so much happening behind the scenes that makes our industry truly unique.”

***

Dayalan Chinsammy, who has owned horses for 25 years and has 10 Grade 1 wins on the board, said it gave him great satisfaction to bring the joy of ownership to new people. Seven owners had the pleasure of leading in their first Grade 1 winner, Fiery Pegasus on Saturday: Bafana and Kgaladi Ncube (as above), Betway’s Jonathan Blumberg, Marlon Naicker, Bronson Nassif, Roger Coppin and MGAS Bloodstock’s Gabi Soma (who also purchased the filly from the Bloodstock SA National Yearling Sale).

Chinsammy, who introduced Marlon Naicker to racing, said: “Marlon, like Bafana, had little knowledge of racing. We showed him the ropes, entertained him on a race day and took him to the winner’s enclosure for the experience of leading in a winner. He bought a share in one horse, now he has shares in 45 horses.”

Chinsammy agreed with Sithebe that the 360° approach was essential and said: “I want to add to this. I think trainers getting new blood into the game should make a point of explaining the risks. They don’t always do that, and new clients leave the game after a bad experience. I believe also that trainers should rather get the new clients to buy at the middle and the top end than at the bottom end. Their chances are better in the R300-400,000 range and higher, than messing around with a runner bought for R25,000.

“Some trainers believe in hooking someone with a R5,000 or R10,000 investment and those individuals can get hurt, because they’re invariably buying into poorly-bred horses or those with problems and they end up paying training fees with no chance of a return. There are exceptions, of course, but my advice would be for trainers and bloodstock agents to go big, rather than small.”

Fiery Pegasus’ trainer Joe Soma, who took his Grade 1 tally to 12, also agreed with Sithebe on all-round marketing, but added: “I’d like to see trainers at Turffontein and the Vaal included in marketing promotions. We have a lot to offer, and we’re conveniently situated on race days.”

Soma said that he was privileged to have Chinsammy and company in his yard. “They’ve been staunch supporters of my stable and to have won another Grade 1 for them was wonderful.”

***

Natalie Turner, CEO of the Racehorse Owners Association, confirmed that, in 2020, the ROA changed its strategic focus significantly to strive towards a more diverse membership of the Association and participation in the sport of horseracing, from both a race and gender point of view.

“As of 31 July 2024, the ROA stood at 961 members predominantly from the Highveld and the Eastern Cape. An encouraging double-digit growth has been experienced in both the Indian (30%) and Coloured (50%) communities when comparing our statistics to the year ended 31 July 2023. We saw an increase in black members particularly between 2022 and 2023, however this remained flat in 2024. In the first quarter of the 2023/2024 and 2024/2025 seasons, we have seen a higher percentage increase in female members when compared to males. There is still a great deal of work to be done in terms of the racing demographic reflecting the South African population (currently only 19% of owners are from previously disadvantaged communities, up from 15% in 2023). There will be additional focus given to these initiatives in the coming year given the transformative facility agenda of 4-Racing.

“Another exciting development is the appointment of Trevelen Pillay to the ROA board. He begins his tenure after the ROA AGM next week and has already been appointed to our Social, Ethics and Transformation Committee (SETCOM), where we believe he will bring a fresh perspective to our membership transformation strategy.”