14 February,2009 08:07 AM IST | | Vivek Jain
RWITC aiming to showcase horse racing in its true glory
THE Mumbai racing season, delayed by nearly three months this year in view of the outbreak of equine influenza, gets into top gear with a bumper card of quality racing on Sunday, including the first time running of the MiD DAY Trophy.u00a0
u00a0The RWITC, with whom the media has often played cat and mouse in projecting its achievements, has a long wish list and an innovative action plan in place to showcase racing in its true glory and also strive to get the sport the attention it deserves. The cementing of a media partnership with MiD DAY and having a trophy to honour this association are first steps in this direction.
A spate of alternative leisure activities, especially for the young has kept numbers at Mahalaxmi rather flat, though with some uptick. The RWITC has made great progress in attracting top corporates for its events, giving racing a special edge, and in promoting its big days as carnivals of sport and entertainment, but clearly, much more needs to be done.
The effort is to draw a new audience by special offerings, introducing a touch of glamour and fashion, but always remembering that the real star is the magnificent thoroughbred.
That nearly one million visit the Mumbai/Pune race courses over a year is a statistic that would make even the worst critic of the Club or the sport sit up and take notice. The marketing group of the Club has rolled up its sleeves with a planned advertising blitz with a creative flair, a revamped dynamic website, events to attract the upwardly mobile and a focussed drive to keep racing always on centre stage.
Hopefully, the hooves at Mahalaxmi will sound as music to more than just the die-hard racing fraternity who are accused of often having difficulty in seeing anything beyond the galloping equine.
Vivek Jain is RWITC's chairman u2013 media and marketing
