Poundland Hill no more as Jockey Club ends deal early in wake of Jooste scandal

Poundland Hill, the controversial rebranding of the Hill at Epsom's Derby meeting, is no more after the Jockey Club ended the agreement it had in place with the retailer.

The move is due to the crisis that has hit the retailer's parent company, Steinhoff International, which has been engulfed in scandal since last December when the racehorse-owning chief executive of the company Markus Jooste was forced to quit over claims of accounting irregularities.

Markus Jooste: Steinhoff International chief quit over accounting irregularities

At the time the Jockey Club said it was looking forward to Poundland "helping to bring to life the Hill at the 2018 Investec Derby festival".

But Epsom's owner has now had a change of heart and will instead create a similar free-to-access area called Horseplay on the Hill, an extension of an initiative launched by the Jockey Club last year and seen at family fun days across the group's racecourses.

Tom Kerr spends Derby Day on the Poundland Hill

Epsom Downs racecourse's general manager Simon Durrant said: "Due to the widely reported issues concerning Steinhoff International we have mutually agreed that Poundland, one of its brands, will not be involved with the Hill at the Investec Derby festival.

"However, we remain committed to enabling families and racing fans to enjoy world-class racing and entertainment from the heart of Epsom's downs for free and will be building on the excellent zone that was created last year.

"This year will see a similar area created, called Horseplay on the Hill, which will be a free-to-access area with free racing-inspired activities and games for the family, seating areas, wet weather cover and a big screen to see all the action from the racecourse."

The Poundland deal was unveiled last year along with an extension of Investec's sponsorship of the Derby until 2026, which the Jockey Club said was unaffected by developments.

Jooste is still named as one of the part-owners of the Aidan O'Brien-trained Magic Wand who was one of 60 entries for this year's Investec Oaks unveiled on Wednesday.

Ballydoyle's 23-strong contingent for the Classic, run on June 1, includes ante-post favourite Happily.

Last year's Oaks winner and Arc heroine Enable and her John Gosden-trained stablemate Cracksman were among 25 entries revealed for the Investec Coronation Cup on the same card.

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