CourseTrack, the horse racing tracking and timing service used across UK and Irish racecourses, has appointed Chris Murtagh as Managing Director, marking a leadership transition within a business that provides live data services to broadcasters, bookmakers and the wider igaming ecosystem.
Murtagh joined CourseTrack in 2015 as Operations Director and steps into the Managing Director role following the decision by Dave Tharp to move away from day-to-day management. Tharp will remain involved with the business as a Director, maintaining continuity as CourseTrack continues to supply real-time race data to racing and igaming stakeholders.
CourseTrack operates a live, in-race timing system based on lightweight GPS trackers carried by racehorses within the saddlecloth. The system delivers real-time data across all races at 60 racecourses in the UK and Ireland, including race time, leader speed, sectional times and distance to the finish. This data is distributed to broadcast partners such as ITV, Racing TV and RTÉ, and is also integrated into igaming and betting environments.
The service supports in-running betting with 10 bookmakers in the UK, forming part of the infrastructure that underpins live betting markets within igaming. In addition to betting applications, CourseTrack’s data feeds power Race IQ, an analytics product used across broadcast and social media, and are also applied in areas such as handicapping and horse welfare monitoring.
Real-time tracking provided by CourseTrack is used at several high-profile international races, including the Randox Grand National, Cheltenham Gold Cup, Betfred Derby and Irish Champion Stakes. The system uses RTK technology to deliver sub-10cm accuracy, enabling precise live tracking that enhances data quality for racing fans, broadcasters and igaming operators.
Before joining CourseTrack, Murtagh built experience across professional sport and digital project management. His career includes time as a professional cricketer with Surrey CCC and Shropshire CCC, followed by roles managing digital projects such as the Investec Cricket Zone, participation programmes for the LTA and a live auction fantasy football product developed for UEFA.
The appointment comes as demand for high-quality, real-time data continues to grow across racing and igaming, with live content and in-play betting remaining key engagement drivers for operators, media groups and sports governing bodies.
Chris Murtagh, MD at CourseTrack, said: “I am delighted to be stepping into the Managing Director role at CourseTrack and would like to thank Dave Tharp for his success in growing the company to where it is today. The company is built on a hardworking operations team delivering a slick service at over 1,000 fixtures a year, whilst a tech team has ensured that at regular intervals, we are deploying improved firmware and software upgrades to the product.
“The next step for CourseTrack is to continue to deliver a robust service to our current customers; to evolve the technology, and to grow the business into new territories. We are also delighted to welcome Simon Kirk back to CourseTrack as Operations Manager to help achieve this.”
