Dear Member,
Saturday 23 July 2016 at Flemington racecourse marks a very special date for the training profession in Australia.
At 2.20pm AEST, the TAB/ATA Trainers’ Trust Handicap will be run. This is the official “coming out” for the Australian Trainers’ Trust; the first visible race day promotion for the Trust at a racecourse anywhere in Australia.
The Trust took some two years to develop from concept to race day. Launched in September 2015 with seed funding from the State Government of Victoria & Racing Victoria, it is the only national medium of its kind with the ability to assist trainers and their families where, following serious injury, illness or death of the trainer, this creates a necessitous situation that calls for urgent financial support.
We are also pleased to welcome Tabcorp on-board as our co-naming rights race sponsor, using their familiar TAB brand. The recent renewal of our sponsorship arrangement with Tabcorp included them providing a significant financial contribution to the Trust. This action by Tabcorp, the acknowledged cornerstone of the Australian racing industry in terms of financial investment, demonstrates their strong commitment to supporting the welfare and well being of racing participants.
The Trust has application to every licenced trainer in Australia - be it the professional trainer in Melbourne, or hobbyist in Tasmania, to trainers resident in the top end of Queensland and those in outback Western Australia, and whether a member of the ATA or not. At days end, injury, illness or death do not discriminate by postcode, licence type or membership status, and neither shall the ATA.
The ATA is justifiably proud to have been the architect of this important initiative; and we would ask that on Saturday, all trainers pause for a minute or two and join with us as we acknowledge and celebrate this event.
Yours Sincerely
Andrew Nicholl
Chief Executive Officer
