Newly-appointed CEO of the Mauritius Turf Club Mike Rishworth gives his first press interview after being unveiled by the local racing organiser weeks ago. The South African believes he can turn things around at the Champ-de-Mars with the support of all those connected to the racing industry.

Back home, you now realise how hard a work it is to be CEO of the MTC, isn’t it?
There are many challenges that face the MTC. I am however confident that most of these challenges can be overcome by working more closely with the various arms of Government, in particular the Gambling Regulatory Authority (GRA), to find mutually beneficial solutions to the many complex problems.

Having said that, what is really exciting is the passion of the people of Mauritius towards the sport of horseracing. I am looking forward to working with all stakeholders to build on this passion and capitalise on the many opportunities that are available.

You have had the opportunity to have a proper look at how things go on in the Mauritian racing industry. Were you expecting things to be different?
No, not really. I had read a tremendous amount about Mauritius racing before I arrived. I had also spoken to a number of people about the industry and had been well briefed by the board of administrators. I had also been at the races on a couple of previous occasions in the past and was well aware of the popularity of racing in Mauritius.

I hear you have gone through all the existing reports published on racing in Mauritius. What are the main issues preventing our racing industry to flourish?
As I mentioned at the press conference when I was introduced to the racing press, my view is that some of the more pressing issues are the following but in no particular order:

(i) We urgently need to find alternative sources of revenue for the MTC. This will require working together with the GRA to provide additional and more attractive betting opportunities. Examples of this are : (a) Permitting Mauritian citizens to bet on foreign racing. This would however only be possible if the Mauritian tote was permitted to comingle its totalisator pools with international pools; (b) selling our racing product internationally. This would however become much more attractive to foreign investors if they were permitted to comingle into Mauritian tote pools; (c) increasing the number of race meetings per annum to at least 40; (d) obtaining approval to run nine or 10 races on a race day.
(ii) Reducing the amount of illegal bookmaker betting and re-directing this through legal fixed odds channels.
(iii) We need to work very hard to ensure the integrity and competitiveness of Mauritian racing.
This list is not exhaustive and is only meant to provide a few of the potential opportunities.

“There are many challenges that face the MTC. Most of these challenges can be overcome by working more closely with the various arms of Government, in particular the (GRA, to find mutually beneficial solutions to the many complex problems.”

But one of the biggest issues according to many observers is the way the MTC is being run, that is still as a club. How ambitious are you to help turn the corner and run it as a new business model?
I am very optimistic that this can, and will, happen.

Mauritius being a totally different state than South Africa for example, do you think people will accept changes easily here?
My view is that the vast majority of the changes will be positive and for the long term good of racing. As a result most changes should be relatively easily accepted. Having said that, in any restructuring process there will be some tough decisions that will need to be taken but we will have to deal with these issues when they arrive.

And for changes to be made, you will be needing the helping hand of the GRA. Tough task because of the mistrust which appears to exist between the MTC and the GRA, isn’t it?
We are working flat out to restore any mistrust that might exist and going forward to work together as partners.

Much has been said about bookmakers in Mauritius. Will you be needing them for the future of horseracing in our country?
Yes, my view is that bookmakers are an integral and necessary part of the horseracing industry. As previously stated, the challenge however is to reduce the amount of illegal betting and redirect this through legal channels.

“Bookmakers are an integral and necessary part of the horseracing industry. As previously stated, the challenge however is to reduce the amount of illegal betting and redirect this through legal channels. ”

The Parry Report recommends that the MTC be granted a Sports betting license. Is it the way forward?
It is certainly something that we will be talking to the GRA about. It is true that worldwide sports betting is growing rapidly and unfortunately it is often at the expense of horseracing turnovers. This issue could be added to the ones I mentioned earlier.

One of the weaknesses of the MTC voiced out at a Strategic Planning Conference back in April 2008 is that “the perception is that racing is controlled by white, elitist and wealthy patrons”. You’ve been here for three weeks. What have you got to say?
It is difficult for me to answer this question since, as you say, I have only been involved with the MTC for three weeks. Having said that, I have been told that significant progress in this regard has been made since 2008 and we will work very hard going forward to eliminate this stigma.