Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees
Wednesday, 17 April 2024
Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine
Harness Racing: Irish Harness Racing Association
Mr. Mark Flanagan:
The Dundalk experience was to show you guys that there is a product there that could be bet on. We invited along people from the Department of agriculture. It was a tangible experience for them that they could see that this sport is a legitimate sport and can attract investment into the country. The French thoroughbred derby was on that day, and ours was the first international meeting on a Sunday evening shown in France, so we were the first one after the French thoroughbred derby. It was from 6.30 p.m. until 8 o'clock in the evening, on a Sunday, and they bet €900,000 on us. That is very impressive.