Photo Finish: LONGINES Hong Kong International Races Prize Money Nears £12 Million.

Prize money for the 2023 G1 LONGINES Hong Kong International Races (HKIR) has been upped to an all-time high of HK$118 million (£11.9m), underlining its claim to being the unofficial world championship of turf horseracing.

The increase comes as part of the December showpiece meeting in which Hong Kong will continue to host the world’s richest Group 1 turf races over six furlongs, a mile and a mile-and-quarter.

The G1 LONGINES Hong Kong Cup, run over 2,000 metres, remains the most lucrative race, with prize money of HK$36 million (£3.63m).

The 1,200 metre Hong Kong Sprint is worth HK$26 million (£2.62m). The Mile race has prize money of HK$32 million (£3.22m). And the Hong Kong Vase, the longest race, run over a mile-and-quarter (2,400m) now has prize money of HK$24 million, some £2.42m.

Moreover, each of the city’s 12 Group 1 races will now be run for a minimum of HK$1 million (£100,000).

The enhancements further demonstrate Hong Kong’s record prize money and incentive structure of an estimated HK$1.73 billion (£174.5m) across the 2023/24 season.

The Queen’s Silver Jubilee Cup, Hong Kong’s richest Group 1 turf race over 1400m, will feature prize money of HK$13 million (£1.31m); while the club has also elevated Group 2 and Group 3 races to HK$5.35 million (£540,000) and HK$4.2 million (£423,000), respectively.

Said HK Jockey Club CEO Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges: “The LONGINES Hong Kong International Races continue to be widely recognised as the ‘Turf World Championships’. And the HK$118 million total prize money on offer next season underscores the club’s commitment to attracting and rewarding the world’s best horses and their [teams].

“With growing competition around the world, it is crucial that Hong Kong’s two international race days–the LONGINES Hong Kong International Races and FWD Champions Day–continue to be destinations of choice for owners, trainers and jockeys from around the world.”

Added Andrew Harding, the club’s Executive Director of Racing: “Before the 2022/23 season, we undertook a thorough review of our prize money and incentive structure and decided then to commit to continuous investments into the future, which has resulted once more in significant prize money and additional incentives.”

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