Soviet Horse Racing's "Inferiority Complex"

Press, Volume XCIX, Issue 29178, 12 April 1960, Page 25

Soviet Horse Racing's "Inferiority Complex"

(From a Reuter Correspondent)

MOSCOW Past glories of Soviet horse racing are being evoked in a bid to revive the sport from the torpor of post-war years and to produce horses good enough to compete with the best on international tracks. Critics say that the sport is suffering from an -inferiority complex”—and point to the few, and unsuccessful, excursions to European and American race courses. The best remedy, they say, vould be to increase international visits, especially to Italy, France and Sweden. And they add that with the Soviet Union’s racing background and potential, its horses and jockeys should be leading in the straight and not being beaten from the first bend. Hie sport has a considerable following in the Soviet Union. Official statistics say that flat racing attracts about 400,000 fans a month to hippodromes (race tracks) throughout the country. Trotting at the Moscow Hippodrome. the headquarters of Soviet racing, packs in about 700,000 people during a three months, three days a week summer season.

Betting is permitted. There are totalisators, but no bookmakers—and a complete absence of racing gossip, tips, results and form which is a feature of the sport in ether' parts of the world. Soviet racing since the end of World War II has made only the major and a few minor raids on European and continental prizes. IB 1958, two horses, both with British ancestors, carried Soviet colours abroad for the first time •t the crack Washington International at Laurel Park. Both finished out of the first three. Since then, the Russians have made rare trips to European courses for steeplechasing and Now critics, led by two in “Moskovskaya Pravda,” the organ of tfae Moscow City Committee of the Communist Party, are suggesting a radical reform of the Soviet racing system. rhe main complaint is that the horses are just not getting the right racing education after leaving the country’s many collective, state and stud farms for the Moscow Hippodrome. Fewer horses are being stabled there—about 600 compared with about 5000 some years ago—and so potentially good material from the farms is not even being considered. “Moskovskaya Pravda” commented: “Our results abroad

show this. We are either losing or with great difficulty scraping draws tin trotting contests) with countries with weakly developed such as Belgium and West Germany. Even the Norwegians can beat us.” . The critics also demand a training school for young jockeys. ♦ e ?u their stand on results ?u , . Moscow Hippodrome in the last five or six years. Apparently the five top Soviet jockeys, none of them youngsters, have been picking up all the prize money. .. Another shaft is aimed at the shortcomings” in the selection of .jockeys to race abroad. The newspaper suggested that the selectors are sending teams which are far too big. ‘Tor each jockey,” it said, “there are often three or four people to give him personal service and leadership/’ The Mojcow Hippodrome administration itself is included in the criticism. There is not, the cr ?ycs say, enough “criticism and self-critidsm” and some of the officials look upon discussions on faults as minor “family arguments.” Finally, “Moskovskaya Pravda” was adamant that racing is a sport. And it insisted that the affairs of racing ought immediately to come under the Union of Sports Societies and Organisations and not, as at present, tinder the Soviet Ministry of Agriculture.