Sir, - As someone who has been a long-time supporter and a small bit active in Irish racing, I cannot understand the admission policy of racecourses towards those aged under 16.

Last Thursday evening my 16-year-old daughter and her friends went all excitedly to Leopardstown races. Needless to say I was quietly pleased, as getting her to any sporting event and looking at Aidan O’Brien in the ring rather than Justin Bieber on her iPhone was a miracle in itself!

Unfortunately I was working and when I returned home for news of how this rare excursion to my favourite pastime went, I was greeted with a tale of anger and frustation as neither her nor her friends were allowed access to the track because they were not accompanied by adults.

I have bitten my lip over this rule for some time as I have never understood the logic of it, particularly when, almost daily, we have industry figures agonising over how they are going to attract young people to go racing as they are the future, et cetera.

Not forgetting either the plethora of costly reports commissioned on how to make racing more attractive.

Now certain righteous citizens might make noises about exposing these youngsters to the vices of gambling and drinking without an adult to mind them but this is frankly ludicrous.

A 16-year-old can go to a soccer, rugby or GAA match where bars are open and in some cases (certainly in the old Lansdowne Road) there are betting shops too.

I trust I don’t need to go into the content and services they can access in private on their beloved phones.

It is also worth highlighting some of the things that a 16-year-old can legally do in Ireland, some of them reflecting the state’s attitude that these individuals are on the cusp of adulthood - a factor that seems to have escaped racecourse management.

So my daughter could get a suitable tattoo (maybe of Ruby or Ryan!) and ride her motorbike to Leopardstown then drive the tractor that pulls the stalls on to the course before returning home via an amusement arcade where she could play the slot machines BUT no way is she going to watch an evening’s flat racing in the company of her friends and maybe have a couple of euro on the Tote, have a ball and spread the word of what great craic the races are and be converted herself for life!

If the racecourses throw out that familiar chestnut of ‘underage drinking’ then it is up to them and their caterers to adhere to the current legislation i.e. do not serve drink to anyone under 18 and get them to show appropriate ID if in any doubt.

The same should apply to the bookmaking fraternity if someone under 18 approaches them to have a bet.

It may be the silly season in August but I think this silly practice has gone on far too long and a common-sense approach should be adopted which would serve Irish racing well in the long-term. - Yours etc.,

PETER O’REILLY

Eadestown,

Co Kildare

Leopardstown CEO Pat Keogh replies: I have great sympathy with Peter, his daughter and her friends.

Leopardstown recognises that children are the future of the sport and we have a number of initiatives which are focused on encouraging the attendance of children and families throughout the year.

These include our annual Family Fun Raceday which runs in partnership with the local community and charities.

We have a ‘behind the scenes’ day where local school children and their teachers visit Leopardstown and learn about racing.

We run a Fan Zone area at each meeting where children get to meet the jockeys and our official racecard includes a dedicated Children’s Page with colouring competitions and stories about key horses and trainers.

The final day of our Christmas Festival focuses on family and children with entertainment for children under cover in the Festival Marquee. As part of our re-development, we will be introducing a children’s play area that will be in keeping with the standard of our new facilities. We encourage children to come to Leopardstown as much as possible.

The rationale behind our adult accompaniment policy stems from our duty of care and social responsibility to both parents and children to prevent underage drinking and drink-related behaviours. Our admissions policy is a direct response to this and has been formulated in consultation with the gardai.

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