Singapore’s Turf Club faces closure after failure to keep the pace

Singapore – On a sunny Saturday afternoon in the far north of Singapore, a weekend ritual is in full swing.

Racegoers at the Singapore Turf Club are crowded around banks of screens, studying the odds for the afternoon’s upcoming horse races.

Many are clutching newspapers, scrutinising the form guide in the hope of picking out a winner. The crowd is largely made up of older Singaporean men, affectionately known as “uncles”.

Soon, they will need to find something else to fill their weekends. The curtain is about to come down on more than 180 years of horse racing history in Singapore, with the final race scheduled for October.

The Southeast Asian nation’s sole horse racing track has fallen victim to the tiny island’s need for land, with its entire 120 hectares (297 acres) to be handed back to the government in 2027 for redevelopment into public and private housing.

When the announcement was made last June, Singapore Turf Club’s chairman,  Niam Chiang Meng, said he was “saddened by the decision” but “understands the land needs of Singapore”.

More than six months later, Singapore’s horse racing community remains shocked, confused and frustrated.

“We had no indication [prior to June] or any information that this place is closing”, said Jason Ong, the president of the Association of Racehorse Trainers Singapore.

“To close down the whole industry in one and a half years, I think that’s something that every participant in horse racing feels is very sudden and hard to come to terms with,” Ong added.