Greyhound racing participants in NSW will share in more than $52 million in 2022-23 with increases to prize money, travel subsidies and welfare schemes. GRNSW CEO Rob Macaulay said the record total of funds to be distributed will have a flow-on benefit in regional communities across NSW.
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"With 75 per cent of our participants in regional and rural NSW, the increases in funding distributions will have a positive impact on their livelihoods, their greyhounds and the local communities in which they reside," Mr Macaulay said.
"The sport of greyhound racing in NSW delivers thousands of jobs and an economic contribution totalling more than $500 million to NSW annually."
Prize money paid by GRNSW has more than doubled. Mr Macaulay recently announced a $2.1 million increase in returns to participants through the payment of fourth-placed prizemoney and a doubling of travel subsidies for those taking more than one greyhound to a race meeting.
Mr Macaulay and senior GRNSW executives will meet with several industry stakeholders and participants next week in Orange for a prize money summit where the needs of participants, and proposals for where additional prize money should be funnelled, will be discussed.
The forecast for the current financial year comes off the back of reporting for 2021-22 where $48.1 million was returned to participants, an increase of more than 20 per cent on the previous financial year. Since the division of functions and responsibilities in the NSW industry in 2018 when the Greyhound Welfare & Integrity Commission took over the role of regulator and GRNSW became the commercial arm, growth in prize money returns has increased from $99.1 million between 2014-15 and 2017-18, to $146.4 million between 2018-19 to 2021-22.
While GRNSW increased feature racing in 2021-22 by introducing the world's richest races over various distances - The Ladbrokes 715m with $500,000 to the winning stayer, the $125,000 Country Classic for middle distance greyhounds, and the $75,000 Thunderbolt for the short-course sprinters - the organisation is aware of spreading the returns, with increases to provincial prize money last December and to city racing earlier this year.
"We understand that for many people these are challenging financial times. We are mindful that when we are in a position to increase the income opportunities and offset costs for participants we will always attempt to do so. At the same time, GRNSW is managing its whole-of-industry investment - and increasing welfare funding - in a responsible way," Mr Macaulay said.
The sustained growth of the overall industry in NSW is being driven by investments in a strong wagering product and the success of GRNSW's animal welfare initiatives as a part of industry reform, which has created greater levels of confidence.
GRNSW provided participants with more than $1.85 million in additional support through their welfare schemes such as the Homing Assistance Scheme, the Racing Injury Rebate Scheme, and the Greyhound Care Scheme.
"Everything we have done in the past 12 months has added up to record rehoming of greyhounds, the lowest recorded injury rates, record funds paid to participants and strong wagering-related revenue growth."
This article was produced as part of an ACM partnership with Greyhound Racing NSW.
