Thundering hooves…

More than 100 years on, the Royal Sabah Turf Club has found a new home in Tuaran after its old racecourse at Tanjung Aru was gazetted for a multi-million ringgit Kota Kinabalu International Airport extension project.

FINAL DASH: Runners entering the final stretch in the Gold Cup race on the RSTC’s old course at Tanjung Aru.

AFTER over a century, the Royal Sabah Turf Club (RSTC) closed its racecourse at Tanjung Aru in Kota Kinbablu last year to pave way for the extension of the state’s airport, touted as the second busiest in Malaysia.

Closure of the old course took place on Sept 27, 2009. Over the past 100 years, racing there had brought together people from all walks of life with a common love for the sport of kings. The highlight at such race meetings was the Gold Cup event, drawing a huge crowd of 10,000 people.

The move to the new Tambalang Race Course (TRC) in Tuaran was necessitated by the state government’s acquisition and gazetting of RSTC’s 4.21-acre site for the over RM1 billion Kota Kinabalu International Airport (KKIA) extension project.

It also marked a turning point in the development of the racing industry in Sabah. Indeed, the relocation has fulfilled RSTC’s quest of a bigger and better racecourse.

Sabah is now looking forward to a new era in the racing industry from the Club’s international setup just outside the bustling state capital city.

TRC, located in a quiet and idyllic village about 45 minutes’ drive from Kota Kinabalu City Centre, was built in the early 1980s at a whopping RM40 million. At that time, it was rated among the best in the region.

Unfortunately, the new 149-acre setup was abruptly abandoned after only one meeting — and the facilities, including its majestic grandstand, were left to stand as a white elephant.

It was only after more than 20 years that the TRC has been given a new lease of life — thanks to the relocation of RSTC. The move has proven to be a boon for the residents, landowners, hoteliers and traders from the area.

Sabah-based lottery operator, Diriwan Corporation Sdn Bhd, which has rented the racecourse for several years now from the government as part of the conditions to run a gaming operation in the state, completed renovation works just in time for RSTC’s soft opening and maiden race meeting on Dec 5, 2009.

According to Diriwan Corporation general manager Joseph KC Lim, the company has already spent over RM10 million restoring the racecourse.

RSTC treasurer and information chief Aven Lim said the revival of racing at the TRC marked a new chapter in “the development of the pony-horse racing sector” in Malaysia, particularly Sabah.

“We’ve come a long way and after more than a century, we have seen tremendous development in the pony-horse racing sector in Sabah. As we move to a new racecourse, we will continue to work for the growth of the industry,” said Lim, a pony owner himself.

At the end of last year, RSTC hosted a big annual party in conjunction with its 100th anniversary at one of the leading resorts in the state capital.

In his speech, Club chairman Datuk Golkhan Hasbullah thanked the state government for continuing to support RSTC and develop the racing sector in the state.

He described the relocation of the Club to TRC as “as dream come true.”

The Club, he said, would provide ample opportunities for the re-introduction of thoroughbred (horse) racing, assuring that better facilities, services and other related activities would also be made available to members and race-goers.

“The improvement of horse racing to international standard in Sabah is now not just a dream because the TRC was built in accordance with international specifications.

“It will enable us to revive thoroughbred (horse) racing that has great potential of attracting visitors from overseas,” said Golkhan from Kota Belud, the heartland of the local Bajau, also know as the “Cowboys of the East.”

Local leaders have also been very supportive of the development of the horse-racing sector, especially Datuk Hajiji Mohd Noor, the state Local Government and Housing Minister. As elected state lawmaker from the area, he has urged the Club to rise to the challenge of raising the standard of horse racing in Sabah.

“I have supported RSTC’s proposal to revive racing in Tambalang, considering the Club has an important role in the state’s socio-economic development as it not provides jobs and services to the locals but also taxes to the state’s coffers.

“In addition, horse racing is able to attract foreign visitors and contribute to the development of the tourism industry,” he said, adding that the existing several major hotels and resorts in Tuaran could provide five-star accommodation to horse racing enthusiasts from countries such as Hong Kong, Australia and Japan.

The overwhelming turnout during the Chinese New Year Cup Meeting on Feb 15 and 16 gave RSTC a dream start at its new location. In fact, the attendance was so good that in Race 10 alone on the previous weekend (Feb 7), the total sales touched RM56,000 and the dividend for the four-forecast was about RM1,100 each.

Aven Lim said over 25,000 people, including tourists from Japan, Taiwan, Korea and Hong Kong, came on each of the two-day meeting, setting a new record for the Club’s attendance.

Among the crowd during the Chinese New Year Cup Meeting was internationally-renowned mega pop star Gary Chaw, who presented the Chairman’s Cup to the owner and jockey of the winning pony, Commando II.

The Chairman’s Cup race exceeded the RM50,000 mark in the totalisator.

Commando II beat a strong field comprising Brisband, The Noble Prize, newly-promoted Boy Bolong, Pear of the Orient, Purple Storm, Royal Chip, Bobee Dream, Babero and Diamond Star which won Tanjung Aru’s last nine-furlong race in September last year.

The Hong Kong-based Chaw, from Kota Belud, said Sabah is not only a popular destination for Hong Kong and Taiwan tourists but also a favourite location for their artistes to shoot movies.

Chaw will be returning to Sabah to launch his latest album probably in March. This time around, he is hoping to bring with him the filming crew of popular Hong Kong-based TVBS, to do a tourism feature film on some of the leading tourist destinations in Sabah, including the TRC.

Lim said droves of racegoers had started signing up as Club members while the price of land in the area has shot up rapidly — from RM80,000 per acre previously to RM200,000 and still climbing. The Club will also be holding other related activities such as equestrian and polo soon to turn Sabah into an international racing circuit, he added.