Curragh delay cost estimated €3m

The Turf Club revealed yesterday that a projected one-year delay in the completion of the new Curragh racecourse development will cost them an estimated €3 million but racing's regulatory body now expects to have Ireland's biggest racecourse project finished by the summer of 2009.

Almost three years after the Aga Khan's donation of the Stand House Hotel kick-started the controversial €100 million face-lift of racing's headquarters, work has finally begun on the site with the Turf Club receiving another boost this week.

The senior steward, Pierce Molony, yesterday confirmed that Kildare County Council has granted planning permission for a spectacular new grandstand, removing another potential banana skin in a legal saga that has continually frustrated the Turf Club's plans for the Curragh up to recently.

"Work has begun on the new ring road and Ascon have estimated that will be completed by April," said Molony. "We are then looking to start work on the grandstand after the Oaks next year. A lot of that work will be done on the site of the current road which should mean it can be done before the Leger without disruption. After that, we will go full steam ahead to have the first stage of the project completed by the 2008 Derby with the final construction completed in June of 2009. Racing will not be disrupted during construction."

However, that is a full year behind the original schedule and Molony said legal wrangles with the local pressure group, the Friends of the Curragh Environment Ltd, have resulted in delays that have cost the Turf Club €3 million. The Friends of the Curragh have still left open the possibility of going to the Supreme Court over a costs issue but the Turf Club have started work on the project anyway.

"It's a commercial decision but also the first step will psychologically be very important as it will help show everyone the scale of what we are trying to do," said the senior steward who also outlined plans for a new and extended Turf Club office to replace the one burned down in October of 2004. The new building is projected to be completed in the autumn of 2007 although local farmer Percy Podger has objected to An Bord Pleanála.

Other news announced by the Turf Club yesterday included proposals for jockeys to be breathalysed from the start of the 2007 flat season. A drug testing system has been in place in Ireland since 2003 but steps are now being taken to get into step with the UK with random testing for the presence of alcohol. The limits set will equate to the limit in place for driving.

"We haven't looked at penalties yet but I would stress there is no evidence to suggest jockeys are riding in races under the influence of alcohol. All samples taken from riders under the drug testing scheme have also been tested for alcohol as well and all have been negative.

"However due to the nature of drug testing, it is only possible to test five riders a day. The advantage of a Breathalyser is that all riders on any given day will have to undergo a test prior to being allowed to ride," said the Turf Club's chief executive Denis Egan.

Pierce Molony also outlined proposals for a new policy in regard to the reciprocation of penalties from other racing jurisdictions in the world after a recent conference in Paris of the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities.

"As a result of the discussions, the article in the International Racing Agreement which deals with reciprocation is now being reviewed and all jurisdictions will be asked to make a provision in their rules to allow an appeal against a ban imposed by a foreign jurisdiction provided the appellant has exhausted all avenues of appeal in that jurisdiction," he said.

Molony, however, stressed that such moves will not affect the controversial former champion jockey Kieren Fallon who is banned from riding in the UK but can continue to ride in Ireland and France.