新加坡赛马业恢复元气
Singapore’s wealthy spur horseracing revival
Long overshadowed by Hong Kong and bypassed by top breeders, Singapore’s once moribund horseracing scene is staging a comeback as the city’s status as a playground for the wealthy is spurring racehorse ownership and attracting big bookmakers.
尽管长期笼罩在香港的阴影之下并被高级赛马繁育师所忽视，但新加坡曾经死气沉沉的赛马业正开始恢复元气。这个城市国家作为富人游乐场的地位，正鼓励人们成为马主，并吸引着大型马彩公司。
For years attendance at Singapore’s only racecourse, in a lush green setting on the north of the island, was thin as punters were put off by modest prize money and the low quality of the race horses.
多年来，在新加坡唯一的赛马场上，观众数量寥寥，微薄的奖金以及赛马质量低下让很多赌客不愿下注。这个赛马场绿树葱葱，位于新加坡北部。
The arrival of casinos in Singapore dealt a further blow, drawing gamblers away to the glitzy blackjack tables and slot machines that have turned the tiny island nation into a southeast Asian betting mecca.
赌场进驻新加坡给赛马业造成了进一步的打击，赌客们被吸引到光鲜的21点赌桌和老虎机前。赌场让这个小小的岛国变成了东南亚的赌博圣地。
But efforts by the Singapore Turf Club to attract top-flight breeders and trainers have started to pay off, according to racing industry figures. Racehorse ownership is growing as Singapore’s low-tax environment and thriving financial sector has created a new class of wealthy individuals with plenty of disposable income.
但根据赛马行业数据，新加坡赛马公会(Singapore Turf Club)吸引顶级繁育师和练马师的努力已开始获得回报。马主数量正在增多，因为新加坡的低税率环境以及蓬勃发展的金融业缔造了一个新的富有个人阶层，他们拥有大量可支配收入。
“The racing is definitely on the up in terms of its quality and acceptance,” says Alastair Donald, managing director of the International Racing Bureau, a UK-based body that promotes horseracing globally.
在全球范围内宣传赛马运动的英国机构International Racing Bureau董事总经理阿拉斯戴尔•唐纳德(Alastair Donald)表示：“从质量和被接受程度来看，赛马运动确实处于上升阶段。”
Horseracing has a longer pedigree in Singapore than Hong Kong, where punters at the territory’s Happy Valley and Shatin racecourses are among the world’s most enthusiastic gamblers.
新加坡的赛马历史比香港悠久。香港跑马地赛马场(Happy Valley)和沙田赛马场(Shatin)拥有全球最热情的赌客群体之一。
The first horse race in Singapore was run in British colonial times in 1843, a year after the Singapore Turf Club was founded – and 42 years before the Hong Kong Jockey Club came into existence.
新加坡首届赛马比赛是在1843年英国殖民时代举行的，之前一年新加坡赛马公会创立，42年后，香港赛马会(Hong Kong Jockey Club)才成立。
Yet Hong Kong’s emergence, along with Japan and Australia, as the top Asian horseracing centres by betting turnover and number of races, has kept Singapore in distant fourth place. The sport was also tainted by race-fixing, discouraging racehorse ownership.
然而，作为亚洲主要赛马中心（根据投注金额和比赛数量衡量），香港以及日本和澳大利亚的兴起，让新加坡屈居第四位。操纵比赛的现象也损害了这项运动的名声，挫伤了人们成为马主的意愿。
Wade Burridge, managing director of Premier Racing Partnerships, which offers part-ownership in race horses, says that by gradually increasing prize money and focusing on better quality horses, Singapore is now back in the game.
提供赛马部分所有权的Premier Racing Partnerships董事总经理韦德•布里奇(Wade Burridge)表示，通过逐渐提高奖金数额以及关注于更高质量的赛马，新加坡的赛马运动已起死回生。
“Customer confidence has come back and it’s one of the cleanest racing businesses in the world,” he says. The racehorse population has doubled since 2007 to 1,400 animals.
他表示：“客户信心已恢复，这是全球最廉洁的赛马事业之一。”自2007年以来，赛马数量已增加一倍，达到1400匹。
One catalyst was the launch of the “Golden Horseshoe” series, with two-year old horses vying on Sunday for a $90,000 purse. The series, part-sponsored by Australian thoroughbred auction house Magic Millions, launched the career of Singapore’s best-known racehorse, Rocket Man, after winning the Dubai Golden Shaheen cup in 2011.
一个原因是“Golden Horseshoe”赛马系列的推出，在这项赛事中，两岁马在周日争夺9万美元奖金。澳大利亚纯种马拍卖行Magic Millions是这项赛事的赞助商之一，这项赛事开创了新加坡最知名的赛马“火箭人”(Rocket Man)的职业生涯，这匹马在2011年赢得迪拜金莎轩锦标赛(Dubai Golden Shaheen)。
“That’s encouraged a lot more local owners to start investing in ownership again,” says Mr Burridge. His company offers a minimum of 1 per cent stake in a horse, and has signed up 242 part-owners, up from 37 in November. Most are expatriates.
布里奇表示：“这鼓励了更多本地马主开始再次投资买马。”他的公司提供一匹赛马最低1%的所有权，迄今已吸引242个部分所有权马主，高于去年11月的37个。多数为外籍人士。
In the decade up to 2005, prices paid for a horse ranged from S$10,000-S$30,000 (US$8,000-$25,000). Horses routinely fetch S$75,000-$150,000 now, he says.
在2005年之前的10年里，一匹赛马的价格介于1万至3万新元（合8000美元至2.5万美元）之间。他表示，如今赛马的价格涨到了7.5万新元至15万新元之间。
Such numbers are luring bookmakers, especially from Australia. Luxbet, a bookmaker owned by Australian-listed Tabcorp Holdings, is awaiting approval to become the first foreign bookmaker to open in Singapore.
这些数字正吸引赌客前来，特别是来自澳大利亚的赌客。由在澳大利亚上市的Tabcorp Holdings所有的马彩公司Luxbet正等待审批，以成为首家在新加坡开业的外国马彩。
David Brooker, racing commissioner for Australia’s Northern Territories, says there will be more: “I think the momentum’s building in Singapore. You are going to see the Australian bookmakers making a push in the next six months. No question.”
澳大利亚北领地赛马专员戴维•布鲁克(David Brooker)表示，未来将有更多马彩公司开业：“我认为，在新加坡，势头正在增强。未来6个月，你们将看到澳大利亚的马彩公司大举进发。这是毫无疑问的。”
天之聪教育
2013-04-27
天之聪教育
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