The programme of races for the Velka Pardubicka meeting on Saturday, October 8^th and Sunday, October 9^th has been changed for the better this year. In recent years, the meeting on the Saturday has been very modest, but measures have now been taken to attract a crowd and offer entertainment on both days.

There will now be a total of 11 championship races over fences and hurdles on the two days, and there will be four significant races on the Saturday. These are

The Silver Trophy, National Listed, over 4 400 metres, classical steeplechase, with prize money of about EUR 10 500. There will also be three major hurdles races on the Saturday.

The Crystal Cup, National Listed, over 4 400 metres, hurdles, is for 5-y-o and older, and has prize money of about EUR 8 000. The other two hurdles races are at Category II;

The Vysegrad Stakes, a new race, over 3 200 metres, is for 4-y-os, and The Gold Brooch, over 3 200 metres, is for 3-y-os. The prize money is about EUR 4 500 for each of the races.

The other three races on the Saturday are at Category IV: a flat race for amateur riders, a hurdles race for amateur riders, and a classical steeplechase for young riders, i.e. winners of fewer than 50 races. I think the races for amateur riders are under the aegis of Fegentri. The first race on Saturday, October 8^th, will probably be at midday, but I will confirm this when an announcement is made.

On Velka Pardubicka day, Sunday October 9^th, there will be 8 races, and all of them will be crosscountry chases. It is a good idea to have a small Category III race on the card. This will presumably be the first race, which will be run at about 11.20. This will help to spread the arrival times of racegoers. Nevertheless, if you are able to, avoid arriving at Pardubice racecourse by car. There is an excellent rail service that makes Pardubice the most accessible town by rail in the Czech Republic. There will be frequent special buses from the Green Gate, the Labe Hotel and the Railway Station, which will get you to the main entrance to the racecourse with little hassle. The seven major crosscountry races will be the:

Labe Stakes, Listed, for 6-y-o+, 5 200 metres, prize money about EUR 26 000;

Vltava Stakes, National Listed, for 5-y-o+, 4 500 metres, prize money about EUR 15 000;

Popler Memorial, National Listed, for 5-y-o+, 3 200 metres, prize money about EUR 11 000;

Jan Kašpar Stakes, National Listed, for 5-y-o, 4 400 metres, prize money about EUR 7 000;

Lata Brandisová Stakes, National Listed, for 4-y-o+ mares, 4 200 metres, prize money about EUR 7 000; and

Czech Steeplechase Association Stakes, National Listed, for 4-y-os, 4 200 metres, prize money about EUR 7 000.

The 126th running of the Velka Pardubicka, with Česká pojišťovna, Listed, for 6-y-o+, is traditionally the last race of the day, and is normally run at about 4.40 p.m.It is a crosscountry steeplechase over a distance of 6 900 metres. The prize money is CzK 5 million, equivalent to more than EUR 180 000.

The Velka Pardubicka meeting offers an opportunity for horses from abroad to win some reasonably acceptable prize money. There will be 9 races with a National Listed rating or higher, plus a couple of Category II races over hurdles. There is prize money down to 5^th place in each of these races, and down to 7^th place in the Velka Pardubicka. We have only a limited number of Listed-quality chasers and hurdlers, and there will be an opportunity for less than outstanding horses to pick up some prize money.

Please note that entries for Velka Pardubicka day close on September 22^nd at midday, declaration to run on September 30^th at midday. For the races on the Saturday, entries close on September 29^th at midday, and declaration to run is on October 4^th at midday.

Czech chasers routinely go abroad and win good prize money. Czech raiders have particularly swept up a lot of prize money at Wroclaw in recent years. The Velka Pardubicka meeting could provide an opportunity for some Polish owners, trainers, horses and riders to come to the Czech Republic and take home some prizes. I hope trainers and owners abroad will look at the race conditions and decide to compete at our top meeting of the year.