Horse racing
Stratford nominated for National Racecourse Award

THE RACECOURSE Association (RCA) on Tuesday revealed the shortlist for the RCA Showcase Awards 2012, with Stratford Racecourse nominated in the Operational Excellence category for their 'affordable e-ticketing solutions and electronic entry systems for small racecourses' initiative.

The awards, run in conjunction with Racing for Change, celebrate excellence and innovation at racecourses across Britain, with entrants looking to claim the overall crown from 2011 Showcase Champion, Doncaster Racecourse.

Ahead of the Showcase Seminar and Awards, which will be held at York Racecourse on Thursday, November 22, entries in each of the seven categories have been whittled down by an independent panel of judges.

Racecourse general manager, Ilona Barnett, commented: "We are both delighted and surprised to be shortlisted in what is a very strong category against some of largest racecourses in the country."

RCA chairman Ian Barlow said: "Once again the independent judging panel has had the difficult task of whittling down a record number of entries to produce a shortlist from which I can see a number of fantastic initiatives.

"I very much look forward to the evening at York Racecourse and learning more about the innovation that racecourses have been exhibiting."

The awards follow on from a daytime programme of seminars and idea sharing where racecourses will be looking to share best practice and good ideas in improving the raceday experience.

Guest speakers on the day include Jamie Aitchison of Channel 4 and Michael Caulfield of Sporting Edge.

One winning initiative from each category will be announced on the night at the Showcase Awards, with the Showcase Champion 2012 (awarded for overall achievement across various categories) announced at the end of the evening.

In addition, the RCA has been running a competition in conjunction with the Racing Post on Facebook and Twitter asking their readers and followers to suggest initiatives to improve the raceday experience. Entries can be viewed online at www.twitter.com/RCAShowcase.

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