The Asian racing industry and in particular the sport in Hong Kong and Korea is set to receive a positive boost following a recent meeting of the International Grading and Race Planning Advisory Committee (IRPAC). As a result of the meeting Hong Kong will see their unrestricted Group races accepted into Part I of the 'Blue Book', the international cataloguing standards guide to black-type events, though it is subject to ratification by the Society of International Thoroughbred Auctioneers (SITA). The meeting of IRPAC also recommended that Korea should be promoted to Part II. This would appear to justify the Korean Racing Authority's decision to open six races to open competition. The KRA have expressed their ambition to develop their sport to try and match the widely admired Hong Kong system, plans which include the staging of two new open races at Seoul in September, to which European challengers are expected to be invited.
Not a subscriber? Click here to sign up for the daily PDF or alerts.
