General News
17 December, 2021
Turf Club gearing up for annual Cup
NEWLY-APPOINTED Camperdown Turf Club president Gerard Ryan is hoping to continue the hard work of outgoing president Laurie Hickey.
NEWLY-APPOINTED Camperdown Turf Club president Gerard Ryan is hoping to continue the hard work of outgoing president Laurie Hickey.
Ryan has stepped into the club’s top role recently after Laurie Hickey stood down after 13 years and knows the pressure is on as the new president responsible for one of Camperdown’s biggest events.
“I’d like to thank Laurie for his 13 years as president and I know I’ve got big shoes to fill,” he said.
“We have done a lot (under Laurie’s leadership) and there is still probably more to do but it is a good, significant one-day event.”
Hickey, said he was looking forward to witnessing the next chapter of the club as a committee member.
“It’s going to be very exciting to see how a different change of leadership goes,” he said.
“Personally I’ve been very grateful to be able to serve a club like this and we’ve made some very significant inroads since about 2000 to now.
“We’ve changed a lot of the club culture around and have made it into a very big event.
“I suppose if you had to reflect winning the Country Racing Victoria event of the year was probably one of the great achievements, but the most significant achievements have been the community turning up and supporting a club that needed a bit of love.”
Both Ryan and Hickey are looking forward to the club’s big event on Saturday, January 15, which is just under a month away.
Tickets are already selling quickly, with bookings for marquees and umbrellas also popular.
The removal of COVID restrictions, which were in place last year, is also expected to help with the return of patron numbers.
“We’re welcoming back all our patrons,” Hickey said.
“Last year we were limited to 1500, so we had limited numbers and plenty of people missed out.
“We’re hoping this year that the 2022 Camperdown Cup is open to allcomers and we’d like to see the biggest crowd ever to celebrate being able to catch-up again.
“It’s one of the few opportunities to be able to get together in such a large numbers, stand around and chat to people you haven’t seen for a while, have a drink, watch the horses and enjoy the beautiful weather.”
Ryan said he is hopeful the event will be one of the biggest yet, especially given the recent challenges COVID has presented.
“Coming out of COVID, we need to get people back and have it as a big, community race-day once again,” he said.
All patrons planning to attend the event are requested to book in advance, while patrons are required to have had both doses of COVID vaccines to attend the event.
Bookings can be made via https://country.racing.com/camperdown, while enquiries can be directed to club manager Karen Van Kempen on 0400 557 625.