The British Horseracing Authority (BHA) is pleased to announce the new membership of the Flat Pattern and Jump Pattern Committees, put together at the beginning of this year following a review of all of the BHA’s Racing Committees to reflect the sport’s new tripartite structure.
The purpose of these two Committees is to advise and make recommendations to the BHA Board on matters relating to maintaining and improving the programme of Pattern and Listed races. The over-arching strategy of both Committees will always be to encourage quality racing and the progression of horses by testing the best animals over a range of distances throughout the season. The long-term health of the wider race programme is also a key focus when it comes to continuing to provide compelling and competitive racing.
Members of the Committees are chosen in order to provide a broad skill and experience base. They will bring their personal expertise to the relevant discussions as independents; they are not there as a representative of any particular stakeholder group. The Flat Pattern Committee, which works closely with the European Pattern Committee and must have due regard to the European Ground Rules, is currently involved in the ongoing review of the British stayers’ programme, in conjunction with the work already being carried out by the European Pattern Committee in this area. The Jump Pattern Committee, on the other hand, has recently been discussing the next stage of enhancements to the overall programme for top quality mares.
The membership of these two Committees is as follows:
Jump Pattern Committee:
Adrian Grazebrook (Chairman), Anthony Bromley, David Cleary, Ed Arkell, Lucinda Russell, Paul Nicholls, Philip Hobbs, Richard Aston, Richard Norris, Ruth Quinn, Sam Hoskins, Steve Mellish
Flat Pattern Committee:
Adrian Grazebrook (Chairman), Andrew Balding, Julian Richmond-Watson, Lydia Hislop, Nick Smith, Nicholas Wrigley, Philip Freedman, Philippa Cooper, Ruth Quinn, Simon Crisford, William Haggas
Ruth Quinn, BHA Director of International Racing and Racing Development, said:
“These committees are made up of very knowledgeable individuals who demonstrate tremendous passion for this important subject. The committee members clearly provide a wealth of experience and will no doubt help to continue to develop and enhance the long-term health of the programme, providing a framework in which the breeding of quality bloodstock and the progression of the thoroughbred are stimulated. We look forward to working with them.”
Simon Crisford, Member of the Flat Pattern Committee, said:
“I am very much looking forward to being a part of the Flat Pattern Committee and the development of the top-end of the race programme. It is great to be working with such a knowledgeable committee to continue to ensure that British Racing is the best it can be.”
Sam Hoskins, Member of the Jump Pattern Committee, said:
“I am honoured to be asked to join the BHA’s Jump Pattern Committee and am looking forward to working with this outstanding committee to develop the Pattern for the benefit of the modern day National Hunt horses and their owners.
“The mares’ programme has come a long way in recent years and the likes of Annie Power, Limini and Apple’s Jade are a great advertisement for owning a National Hunt mare and for developing the mares’ programme further in years to come.”
Notes to Editors:
More detail about BHA’s Committees can be found below:
https://www.britishhorseracing.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/Committees-of-the-BHA-May-2016.pdf
