Under Starter's Orders For Ffos Las Race Dates

- 25 July 2008

Wales's newest racecourse will have eight fixtures in 2009. Ffos Las in Trimsaran, which is due to open next June, has been handed the meetings in the British Horseracing Authority's fixture list for 2009.

The track - the first turf course to open in Britain since Taunton in 1927 - will cater for both Flat and National Hunt.

Its first fixtures are planned for June, during the same week as Royal Ascot.

Ffos Las is being built on a former opencast mining site and millionaire businessman Dai Walters - the driving force behind the project - believes it will rival Chepstow as Wales's premier racecourse.

There will be 1,480 meetings in Britain next year, 24 fewer than in 2008. There will also be four free Sundays in the calendar comprising 140 fixtures, down eight on this year.

However, there will be 567 jump fixtures, a new record and an increase of 11 on this season.

The fixture list is the first to be published since the BHA held its strategic review.

Ruth Quinn, director of racing, said: "The facts emanating from the review and the recommendations that we have been able to implement leaves us in no doubt that British racing's fixture list for 2009 is, by some way, its strongest yet."

Story credit - www.llanellistar.co.uk