Punchestown Bucking The Trend

PUNCHESTOWN SECURES FIVE KEY SPONSORS FOR E1 MILLION FESTIVAL FEATURES

Punchestown Racecourse has secured the support of five key sponsors for its feature events throughout the 2009 National Hunt Festival.

Rabobank, Guinness, Kerrygold, Ladbrokes.com and Ballymore will each lend their name and financial support to the five key races at Ireland's biggest horse racing festival. The five races will together be worth over E1 million.

In marked contrast to business sentiment over the last number of months, Punchestown Managing Director Dick O'Sullivan revealed today (Monday, February 9th) that corporate and restaurant bookings for the Friday of the Festival were already sold out and that the Tuesday only had a handful of places left.

"We were not willing to stand in the shadows and succumb to the doom and gloom," said O'Sullivan speaking at a briefing attended by EU Commissioner Charlie McCreevy and Chairman of Horse Racing Ireland, Denis Brosnan. "We met our sponsors' needs and with their support we have produced as fine a programme of racing as has ever been seen in this country. Though times are tough in the business world, there is still life in the Irish economy and a lot of business bonds will be formed and forged at Punchestown in April. The activities which we host at Punchestown are directly responsible for the creation and protection of an estimated 2,000 jobs locally and this responsibility is something we take very seriously in the current climate."

"Punchestown is maintaining and developing relationships with all its customers that will survive not only this recession but probably the next as well," said Charlie McCreevy paying tribute to the economic importance of the Punchestown Festival stating that "last year's festival was worth over E70 million to the local and national economy" and also highlighting that Punchestown was catering to the regular race goer with group discount packages of only E29 for a days racing, a drink, a bet and a race programme.

"Punchestown is an example of how our sport needs to adapt to the market and offer the best value to retain customers at every level from the turnstile to the winners enclosure," added Denis Brosnan.

Monday also marked the end of a dispute between Paddy Power and Punchestown with the bookmaker renewing support of the Grade One Paddy Power Festival Bumper.

"We are glad that Paddy Power is still part of the family at Punchestown," said O'Sullivan.

The Punchestown Irish National Hunt Festival takes place from Tuesday 28th April to Saturday 2nd May 2009.