Numbers of races run at racecourses abroad by Czech-trained horses in 2000 - 2021

Record numbers of Czech-trained horses ran in races abroad. 31% of all runs in 2021 were at racecourses outside the country.   

This article first appeared, in Czech language, on the Fitmin & TURF Magazín website, under the title Letos padl rekord v počtu startů českých koní v zahraničí. Mimo české dráhy už tuzemští koně absolvovali 31% všech startů. The article was written by Miloslav Vlček, who is the editor of Fitmin & TURF Magazín and an authoritative writer on many aspects of Czech horseracing. He is the leading writer on thoroughbred breeding with reference to the Czech Republic and central Europe.

The last Czech-trained horses to run abroad in 2021 appeared at Deauville on December 23^rd. They completed a record-breaking year for the numbers of Czech-trained horses starting in races abroad in a season – despite the ongoing decline in the numbers of horses in training here.

The statistics show a long-term tendency for the proportion of races run by horses trained in the Czech Republic to keep increasing. At the beginning of the 20^th century, the proportion was just 3.56%. At that time, there were 5906 runners overall, 5696 of the runs were on Czech racecourses and 210 were on courses abroad. Just five years later, however, the proportion of starts abroad rose above 10%, and this proportion doubled in 2016. In the last four years before 2021, about 25% of the races run by Czech-trained horses were abroad – one in four of all races run by horses trained here was at a racecourse abroad.

2021 produced a new record, in absolute numbers and also in relative terms. The overall total number of races abroad by our horses reached 1,503, breaking the record of 1,438 set in 2017. And yet, four years ago, there were 1,234 horses in training here that ran in races, as against only 1,160 this year. 

There was also a new record for the proportion of runs in races abroad, which crossed the 30% barrier and almost reached 31%. Looking at the trend from a different angle that shows up the reduction in the numbers of horses running in races in the Czech Republic, there were 2,343 fewer runners, i.e.  as much as 41% fewer runners, in races here in 2021, in comparison with 2000. (miv)

Robin adds:

Miloslav Vlček has provided statistical data that highlight trends that are known to be worrying for the organisers of racing in the Czech Republic. Since year 2000, there has been a drop from 5696 to 3353 in the numbers of races run by Czech-trained horses at the Czech racecourses within the calendar year. Over the same period of time, there has been a rise from 210 to 1503 in the numbers of races run by Czech-trained horses at racecourses abroad. We could almost say that the Czech Republic has been changing little by little from a horse-racing country towards a horse-training country.

The drop in the numbers of runners at the Czech racecourses must be due to the decisions of owners and trainers. Noone has forced them to race their horses increasingly abroad. Czech owners have presumably exercised an option to reduce the numbers of horses that they have in training (and in some cases to have fewer but higher quality horses, capable of competing successfully abroad). Other Czech owners may have given up after deciding that the joys of horse-ownership are outweighed by the costs and disappointments of horse-ownership. Some foreign owners have decided to have horses trained cheaply but expertly in the Czech Republic and sent to run in the owner’s home country (mainly Germany, Italy or France).

Many of our leading trainers have persuaded owners to buy better-bred horses. These trainers have regarded running good horses abroad as an opportunity to get ahead, and to make a better living than the average Czech trainer twenty years ago. The ongoing low prizemoney in Czech racing is a chronic problem, but in Covid times it is better not to complain – even the low prizemoney has been collected only with great effort and dedication, and Czech racing has survied for another year.

Most of our top jumps jockeys base themselves here but also commute to Italy, Poland and Slovakia, where jumps racing relies on their availability. Some of our flat jockeys try to establish themselves in Germany, while continuing to ride here and in Slovakia when available.    

While the opportunity to race their horses abroad has been welcomed by, or accepted by, leading owners, trainers and jockeys, the situation for Czech racegoers is less satisfactory. There are now fewer race meetings for us to attend here, and the best Czech-trained horses race mainly abroad. The number of suitable races at the Czech racecourses for any one horse to race in, in the course of the season, has become quite limited. For the less successful Czech riders, there are fewer rides available locally.  

Several upcountry racecourses that used to put on a single day or a small number of days of racing each summer have stopped doing so: Benešov, Mimoň, Albertovec, Hradec nad Moravici, Mirošov and Radslavice. As a result, ithe proportion of our races that are run on well-prepared turf has increased – the primitiveness of the upcountry courses was a part of their charm, but it is understandble that some owners, trainers and jockeys disliked them. Owners, trainers and jockeys have seen the better, safer conditions for racehorses at western and southern European racecourses. They have generally liked what they have seen, and they want more safety and more comfort here too. .

The Czech Republic has undergone some profound changes in the past three decades, which have made it easier and more attractive to take Czech-trained horses to run abroad. The Velvet Revolution (1989) transformed Czechoslovakia from a Soviet bloc country isolated from western and southern Europe into a western-oriented central European country. Immediately after Novemvber 17th, 1989, Czechs set out to travel to the west European countries. Czech horseracing also straightaway set out to engage with west European horseracing. In the 1990s, small numbers of horses were sent to run abroad. In particular, steeplechasers were sent to Merano, a spectacular racecourse at which Czechs were welcomed, and where fabulous prizemoney could be  won. Adventurous stable staff went to be work riders in Germany, France, Italy and the UK. It was not easy to get a work permit, and for some trainers the Czechs were just cheap labour. Within just a few years, however, a network of Czech stable staff established itself abroad, based at training centres that appreciated their Czech workers. Foreign friends of Czech racing who have provided help and support for Czech stable staff are remembered with gratitude.

In about 1998, the Czech Republic began to prepare, and to be prepared, for EU membership. It was called harmonization. The idea was that the Czech Republic and the other mainly post-Soviet bloc countries should meet the requirements for EU membership and be ready for a smooth accession. For example, it gradually became less difficult to get a work permit for Germany, France, Italy and the UK, and harmonization of veterinary rules made it less difficult to transport horses across EU borders.

Czech accession to the EU in 2004 made the westward and southward mobility of people and horses easier, though border controls still continued. The old members did not immediately wholeheartedly integrate and bond with the new members, and the Czechs had to learn how to deal with the opportunities and pitfalls provided by EU membership. Nevertheless, within a few years, the leading owner of steeplechasers in Italy began to send a large number of good-quality chasers to be trained in the Czech Republlic by Josef Váňa and to be raced mainly in Italy. Since the 1990s, some horses have also been trained here for German owners and raced mainly in the eastern parts of Germany.

The next important date is the end  of 2007, when the Czech Republic became a full member of the Schengen agreement. The Czech Republic is a landlocked country, surrounded on all sides by Schengen members: Poland, Slovakia, Austria, Germany. Every major horseracing country in Europe, with the exception of the United Kingdom and Ireland, could be reached without stops at the border and, more importantly, thanks to harmonized EU veterinary regulations, without border delays for horseboxes. Until that time, there could be overnight delays at border posts for veterinary checks!

The proportion of races run at racecourses abroad by Czech-trained horses continued to grow steadily. A few Czech trainers, most notably the Váňas and Václav Luka, now keep their training centres open all year round, aided, of course, by climate change. Twenty years ago, most training centres were snowed in for several weeks in winter. Being able to earn money and keep their staff employed all year round is of course good for a trainer’s business.  

It is interesting that the Covid 19 racing years, 2020 and 2021, have marked another increase in the proportion of their races that Czech-trained horses have run abroad. In these particularly difficult times, Czech horseracing professionals have been looking for ways to survive, and have continued to seek opportunities abroad. On the one hand, we wish a better living could be provided for them in their home country. On the other hand, however, we should be are glad that racing abroad offers them not just a way to survive but even an opportunity to do well in the great centres of horseracing throughout Europe and all over the world.