Longines and Ascot Racecourse launched the Swiss watch brand’s innovative Longines Tracking System at the prestigious Royal Meeting on Wednesday.
The concept is a subject close to our hearts with the launch of Sectional Timing in South Africa having recently joined the honours list of the great PR Disasters of the 21st century.
While we bungle through the current attempts at implementation, it is interesting to read an article penned on the benefits of analysis of pace over thirty years ago by Karel Miedema in the Racing Record.
Have a read and wonder why it all sounds so complicated today!
But hats off to Ascot which becomes the first racecourse to be equipped with the system.
This game-changing timing and tracking system – a world premiere in the horse racing industry – provides instant data on the exact position of horses during a race, race rankings, the distance between horses as well as their acceleration and deceleration. In addition, it measures the horses’ covered and remaining distance in the race.
Entirely based on satellite data, the Longines Tracking System boasts extreme accuracy, without any permanent installation on the racecourse, as required by the current tracking systems. Developed in collaboration with Swiss Timing, the system represents a technological break-through in the horseracing industry, as it enables the most prestigious racecourses across the globe – including those located in protected historical or natural sites – to have access to such advanced technologies.
Juliet Slot, Chief Commercial Officer, Ascot Racecourse commented: “We are delighted to have installed the new Longines Tracking System, adding valuable information to our racegoers and racing shareholders even now in the early days of its implementation. Longines as our Official Partner and Timekeeper has been committed to showcasing their system at Ascot and we are delighted with the results.”
