Maisons-Laffitte closure plan sparks outrage and rallying cries

Rumours had been circulating for nearly a week but there was still shock and dismay in the French racing community at the announcement on Wednesday morning that racing at Maisons-Laffitte will cease at the end of next season.

Maisons-Laffitte's mayor, Jacques Myard, described the decision as "appalling", while locally-based trainer Gina Rarick said she believed the racecourse had been systematically underused in order to pave the way for Wednesday's announcement.

The track, with a history dating back to 1878, is most famous for its 1m2f straight track and is the venue for two of France's most important Classic trials, the Prix Djebel and the Prix Imprudence.

Other important races staged at the course, which lies in the western suburbs of Paris, include the juvenile Group 2s – the Prix Robert Papin and the Criterium de Maisons-Laffitte.

The plan to close Maisons-Laffitte after the last of its 24 scheduled racedays in 2019 was announced in tandem with a €1.5 million investment designed to restructure the town's training centre – which has capacity for 1,500 horses but currently houses around a third of that number. The scheme will result in the loss of 31 jobs.

Supporters of Maisons-Laffitte begin to mobilise

An online petition launched by the Save Maisons-Laffitte campaign had already garnered more than 3,300 signatures by the middle of Wednesday afternoon.

In advance of the announcement, the town council unanimously passed a motion on Tuesday evening to fight the decision and giving full power to the mayor, Jacques Myard – a former senator and the fiercest defender of the racecourse over a number of years – to fight the decision "by all means available to him."

Mayor of Maisons-Laffitte Jacques Myard (left) will be a key figure in the fight to save the racecourseCredit: Aprh

Myard met with government officials in Paris on Wednesday afternoon to argue for intervention against France Galop's plan.

He later tweeted: "The decision of France Galop to shut down Maisons-Laffitte is appalling. The directors of France Galop have lied to me and no longer have any credibility. They're responsible for the ruin of the industry. I'm asking the government to change the governance of the industry quickly"

Myard's call to reform the way the sport is managed echoes the recent government-sponsored report issued by Jean Arthuis, though he also demanded a big reduction in the cost of running France Galop's training centres in Maisons-Laffitte and Chantilly.

Maisons-Laffitte has been dogged by a number of issues in recent years, including flooding from the adjacent River Seine and horses slipping on the right-hand turn on the round course.

But it is France Galop's attempts to balance the books that has led its Central Economic and Social Committee to recommend the closure of the track.

A plan to study the viability of Maisons-Laffitte submitted in 2013 under the previous France Galop president, Bertrand Belinguier, was vigorously fought by unions and racing professionals, leading to its abandonment.

Savings were subsequently made by not renewing the lease to stage jump racing at Enghien, while the last major Parisian racecourse to be closed was Evry in 1996.

Rarick: some labour reform is necessary

As a US native, Gina Rarick brings an interesting perspective to the issue. She trains 16 of the 500 horses housed in Maisons-Laffitte and believes the closure of the track will be the result of a policy geared to marginalising its importance.

But she conceded the need for a cut in the numbers of staff France Galop employs to maintain the training centre.

"This time they’re saying concretely that they’re going to get rid of 31 jobs and I think the key to everything is in that statement right there," said Rarick.

"The problem with Maisons-Laffitte for years and years is we’ve had an incredible burden of too many people working here. The problem isn't the size of the centre and we could actually attract more horses here because it's a fantastic facility.

US-born, Maisons-Laffitte-based trainer Gina Rarick, pictured with Quiet ZainCredit: Racing Post / Scott Burton

"But with French salaries, it’s insane what you have to pay for them. That’s been the huge problem and I think, if we could get that done, we could probably save the place. I think the only way in France to get that done is to say 'we’re closing.'

"Whether the closing actually has to happen and then we can have some phoenix-like rebirth or what they can salvage, I don't know."

Of the track closure, Rarick added: "We have the 2,000 metre straight, which is an absolutely fabulous stretch, is very flat and fair. It has been neglected and underused because there's been a politic [policy] against the place for so long."

Three familiar names who graced Maisons-Laffitte

Reckless Abandon

Classy sprinter Reckless Abandon rocked up at Maisons-Laffitte in 2012 unbeaten after a maiden success at Doncaster and a game victory in the Norfolk Stakes at Royal Ascot for trainer Clive Cox.

Sent off 9-4 favourite for the Group 2 Prix Robert Papin with a new partner in the saddle in Gerald Mosse, his first trip to France proved to be no threat to the small list of ones in the form book as he comfortably kept fellow British raider Sir Prancealot at bay having made most of the running.

Reckless Abandon (spotted sleeves): won at the trackCredit: Alan Crowhurst

Reckless Abandon returned to France shortly after to win his first Group 1, the Prix Morny, which was swiftly followed by another in the Middle Park Stakes at Newmarket, completing a perfect juvenile campaign.

He had truly peaked well before Godolphin purchased him at the end of his three-year-old campaign, never winning again.

Kool Kompany

Another winner of the Prix Robert Papin, albeit a race he tackled without the burden of an unbeaten tag unlike Reckless Abandon.

That is not to belittle the two-year-old campaign the Richard Hannon-trained runner had put together before his win in France, as he already had four victories to his name that included a Group 2 success at the Curragh in the Railway Stakes.

In the colours of Middleham Park Racing, Kool Kompany did not have his own way out in front under three-time champion jockey Richard Hughes but after being shaken up a couple of furlongs out, he rallied under pressure to defy the Charlie Hills-trained Strath Burn and an outsider of the home contingent, Lehaim.

Narrowly beaten in a Group 1 on his following start, Kool Kompany found winning difficult for the rest of his career, which featured a stint in Australia for Chris Waller before returning to Hannon’s yard.

Twice Over

Sir Henry Cecil and owner Khalid Abdullah had a special horse in their midst with Twice Over, a four-time Group 1 middle distance winner who amassed in excess of £2.5million in prize-money.

While most of his high profile wins, including two Champion Stakes victories, would remarkably come in the later years of his career, he showed plenty of signs he was smart on his early starts and duly made his breakthrough in Group 2 company at Maisons-Laffitte.

Twice Over: won under Ted Durcan at Maisons-LaffitteCredit: Edward Whitaker

He lined up the 11-8 favourite for the Prix Eugene Adam and after being positioned in midfield by rider Ted Durcan, he picked up well for the urgings of his jockey to win by three-quarters of a length from City Leader.

Not many would have predicted the wave of success that followed his first Group-race triumph over ten furlongs, but in many ways Maisons-Laffitte was the start of an exceptional career.

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