Owner Asks Charity Mile Draw Question

A total of 28 entries were received at first acceptance for the R800 000 Gr 2 Allied Steelrode On A Mission Charity Mile on Monday morning.

The Charity Mile will again be sponsored by leading global steel manufacturer Allied Steelrode On A Mission when run at the Turffontein Racecourse on Saturday 29 October.

Astrix – now races out of the Johan Janse van Vuuren yard (Pic – JC Photos)

The Allied Steelrode On A Mission Charity Mile is an important Summer Cup prep race and will also benefit 16 Johannesburg charities this year.

Jointly top-rated amongst the entries is Corne Spies’ recent Gr2 TopBet Mike O ‘Connor Joburg Spring Challenge winner William Robertson and former Paul Peter-trained Gr1 winner Astrix (125).

Out of province entries include Gareth van’s Zyl’s smashing grey After The Rain, Peter Muscutt hard-knocker Gentleman’s Wager and Justin Snaith’s Hoedspruit.

Randjesfontein trainers Mike de Kock and Sean Tarry have eleven entries between them.

An independent owner phoned the Sporting Post offices to query, without suggesting any skullduggery, the statistical likelihood of De Kock and Tarry having eight of their eleven candidates pulling sequential draws inside the first nine slots in a twenty-eight horse entry.

Also the fact that De Kock, beyond the 18 for Forever Mine, has draws 2,3,4,5 and 6, whileTarry entrants drew 7,8 and 9, as well as 21 and 24.

The other yard with a substantial entry is Johan Janse van Vuuren, whose quintet drew slots 1,13,14, 22 and 27.

While it’s a numbers game and open to any form of interpretation, we are assured it’s 100% independent and random when querying the process of the computerised draw allocation process. We were told by the National Racing Bureau’s Aveen Sewpersad that their computer programme did not read horse or trainer names.

“Each horse has an identity/ registration number on our system. Draws are produced within two seconds of request. The draws are not grouped to a trainer. Our system has also been independently verified and may I draw the public’s attention in that regard to the certificate below,” added Sewpersad.

Click here for the certificate of compliance.

A knowledgeable racing man canvassed by the Sporting Post said that the occurrence was simply a case of pure ‘hindsight coincidence’.

“If we had to ask prior to the draw, what are the chances of the two top yards having 8 of 11 entrants in the first nine slots and eight gates sequentially, we’d say, never!  But once something has happened, then it’s no longer a big deal. It’s like when lighting strikes your bird bath where you were standing a minute before. You’d say never, ever. But it’s actually random! We may find Actuaries and Conspiracy Theorists arguing differently. Sometimes we get Lotto numbers falling sequentially – if they were perfectly staggered with gaps, then we would be seeing spooks too,” he laughed.

Here are the entries: