Leeton Harness Racing Club has had more then a quarter of its race meets for 2026 cut by Harness Racing NSW. Photo: Supplied.
The president of the Leeton Harness Racing Club has expressed concern about the future of regional race meetings following Harness Racing NSW’s decision to scrap several meetings in the Riverina.
Due to restructuring, Leeton, Junee, Dubbo, Temora, Coolamon, Young and Parkes are each set to lose at least three meetings, as Harness Racing NSW (HRNSW) looks to focus on clubs that host regular meets.
The Leeton Harness Racing Club has to now hosted 11 meets each year, barring extreme weather.
The decision by HRNSW has left many regional club members worried that the initial cut might just be the start, including Leeton Harness Racing Club president Paul Symes.
“Just by having the three meetings already cut, Leeton will miss out on $150,000,” he said.
“If Leeton continues to have meetings cut, people will leave town.
“In Leeton, we’re as far west as races meet in the Riverina. Trainers are already forced to travel hours in order to race; if the races are continued to be cut down, people will leave.
“That has a flow-on effect for not just racing but animal services as well. Vets and the like attached to it will also leave town, and that affects every pet owner.”
Mr Symes said that for many regional communities, harness racing clubs had been operating for upwards of 50 years, with many of the trainers being third- and even fourth-generation.
“We’ve been told that one of the things we need to work on is building the brand of each of the clubs and creating a presence,” he said.
“Places like Wagga get the luxury of hosting a meet every week, but for clubs that are a bit smaller, we really do rely on spreading the word.
“During our Christmas and Boxing Day events, we really do draw large crowds, and people enjoy coming and participating.
“We are now looking at ways of building that kind of draw year-round. We’re looking at ways to draw people to our social media and really build that foundation.”
Mr Symes said the stigma about how horses were treated hindered the cause.
“99.9 per cent of horse trainers or owners love their animals as much as their families,” he said.
“For many trainers, looking after horses is part of their DNA, it’s in their blood.
“We’re hoping that the cut from 11 meets down to eight is the end of it, but the only way we can guarantee that is to continue proving that places like Leeton are marketable.”
