Local jockeys Brian Boodramsingh and Ronald Ali will join forces with riders from Jamaica and Barbados to compete in the UK versus the Caribbean Jockey Challenge to take place at Santa Rosa Park, Arima, on November 29.
Shane Ellis and Omar Walker from Jamaica, as well as Rickey Walcott and Anderson Trotman from Barbados will form a combined team against a UK sextet that include Lanfranco Dettori, Kieren Fallon, Jamie Spencer, Seb Sanders, Thomas Queally and Jimmy Fortune.
Speaking at yesterday's launch of the Tourism Development Company sponsored jockey challenge held at the VIP Lounge at the Hasely Crawford Stadium in Woodbrook, Christopher Armond, chief executive officer at the Arima Race Club (ARC) said the event was being held in collaboration with British promoter Jeff Lawton.
He said local and international riders selected for this tournament would compete in six speciality races to cop individual and team awards.
Armond said the idea to import this sport tourism event was realised when two directors from the ARC travelled to Barbados to witness the event last year and expressed satisfaction with the quality of the production.
"They told the board they liked what they saw and we invited Lawton to come to T&T in January to have discussions on having the event here. We have concluded all those arrangements so it could happen. He is again doing it in Barbados on November 22. But they will be riding against the Barbados team, not a Caribbean team. It takes a lot of (money). I don't want to go into a specific figure. When you have riders of the international reputation of Frankie Dettori, Kieren Fallon and James Spencer they charge appearance fees, in addition to hotels, meals, air and ground transportation and the majority of them are either bringing a friend or a companion," Armond said.
He added: "Horse racing, as you know, has been struggling for quite some time, not in the Caribbean alone, but globally. When you have a situation at the end of the year, as they do in America every year with the Breeders Cup Series of races, it gives a lift to the sport and gives the sport a high profile image. The sport here needs a high profile image that this will definitely bring. We thought it might have been too onerous to find one sponsor. So, we identified 20-odd sponsors. If we could get 20, we could make it a break even effort. So far we have gotten good corporate from 10 to 12 sponsors including the Tourism Development Company who is our major sponsor."
While he predicted the event would be a success, Armond shied away from declaring it would become an annual event.
To do so, he said, might dilute its impact. Armond said the ARC would consider hosting the event every three years.