100,000 Go Racing in Yorkshire!
Story Published: 26 July 2010
Over 100,000 people enjoyed this year's Yorkshire Racing Summer Festival - a record attendance for the event.
The Festival, now in its third year, saw sizeable crowds across the county from the first meeting in Ripon through to the last meeting in Pontefract. It is expected that crowd numbers will be up almost a third on the inaugural Festival after 27,000 packed into York on Friday night and another 42,000 filled the Knavesmire on Saturday.
Gary Verity, chief executive of Welcome to Yorkshire, a main Festival sponsor, says: "We want more people to come to Yorkshire and experience the best of our county and what better way to see more of Yorkshire than by going racing. It's fantastic news that over 100,000 people went racing in Yorkshire for the Summer Festival, but next year we want more!"
Simon Channon, Chairman of Festival organisers Go Racing In Yorkshire, said: "I'm really chuffed. The racing public has embraced the Festival and the remarkable increase in the Festival attendance is testament to the support of our sponsors and the enterprise of everyone connected with the event."
The Festival was supported by Welcome to Yorkshire, Sky Bet, Keepmoat, The Yorkshire Post, Yorkshire Radio and Racing For Change and brought racegoers to all eight flat tracks in the county.
Malton-based based Richard Fahey and his stable jockey Paul Hanagan were crowned the Keepmoat Yorkshire Summer Racing Festival's leading trainer and rider at Pontefract on Sunday.
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Photos: Packed stands enjoy the Yorkshire Racing Summer Festival
Editors' Notes:
- Welcome to Yorkshire is the official tourism body for Yorkshire, working to grow the region's visitor economy.
- Welcome to Yorkshire is funded by Yorkshire Forward, the Regional Development Agency charged with improving the Yorkshire and Humber economy.
- Key facts include:
- Tourism in Yorkshire is worth £6.5 billion annually
- The region's industry employs a quarter of a million people
- There are 209 million visits to Yorkshire each year
For further information please contact:
Andrew Denton - Press Officer, Welcome to Yorkshire
Email: adenton@yorkshire.com
Direct Line: 0113 322 3537
Mobile: 07855 812094
Jo Mapletoft - Sponsorship Manager, Doncaster Racecourse
Email: jo.mapletoft@doncaster-racecourse.co.uk
Mobile: 07855 852056
Graham Orange - Press Officer, Go Racing in Yorkshire
Direct Line: 01937 580051