TROIS-RIVIERES - A group with a high-profile member is opening a race track in Trois-Rivieres in an attempt to revive horse racing in Quebec.
The Quebec Jockey Club has offered online betting since 2010, taking in close to $500,000 in bets per month.
But to increase the purses for jockeys, the group said it needed its own track.
"We looked at various options, but we decided that the race track at Trois-Rivieres was the perfect fit for us," said Vincent Trudel, general manager of the Quebec Jockey Club.
Newly refurbished and located between Montreal and Quebec City, the Hippodrome Trois-Rivieres will host ten races this fall.
That's great news for Quebec jockey Simon Allard, who moved to Ontario after horse racing went bankrupt in Quebec.
"I've been doing well in the States and in Toronto and I've had a very successful career so far, but here, it was my start," he said, adding that he's excited to race in front of a hometown crowd again.
The revitalization effort in Quebec horseracing is a passion for Montreal Canadiens special advisor Serge Savard, a well-known racing fan and horse owner. Savard has been involved with the jockey club since its inception, thanks to a love of the sport that goes back to his career playing hockey, which began in 1966.
"My best friend when I start playing with the Montreal Canadiens was John Ferguson. John loved the racing industry and every time we had a free afternoon on the road, we were at the race track," he said.
The Quebec Jockey Club plans to open five off-track betting parlours this summer - two of them in the Montreal area.
The club knows the days of racing at the Blue Bonnet race track in Montreal are over, but it hasn't ruled out other locations.
"Our goal in the next five years is to build a race track in the Montreal area," said Trudel.
