Goulburn Race Club CEO Robyn Fife to step down

Long-serving regional NSW thoroughbred administrator Robyn Fife is set to end her tenure as chief executive of the Goulburn Race Club.

Fife confirmed she is retiring but hopes to remain in the role at the NSW Southern Tablelands club until a replacement is found.

Her decision to end a 26-year association with Goulburn marks the second recent high-profile departure from the club, following former president Ken Ikin’s retirement late last year.

Ikin and Fife emerged as key advocates for the sale of the 80-hectare parcel of land that surrounds the Goulburn racetrack and associated infrastructure to Racing NSW in 2024.

Goulburn members voted to sell the freehold to the regulator in exchange for $9.5 million in Racing NSW funding to build new stables and upgraded training facilities to accommodate an additional 80 horses in work at the racetrack.

Opponents of the sale said there wasn’t enough detail in the Racing NSW deal and claimed it lacked additional information on possible alternative proposals.

As she prepares to bow out, Fife insists members made the right decision.

“It’s a progression,” she said. “We have to move forward and move with the times, progress, build more stables, get more trainers.

“The pros definitely outweigh the cons, in my opinion.”

As well as the handover of the club’s land, members also voted in favour of a resolution to give Fife and Ikin the authority to negotiate and finalise the club’s new funding arrangement with Racing NSW.

The stable complex remains an ongoing project, and The Straight understands it is unlikely to be completed until 2027 at the earliest.

“Behind the scenes, there’s been quite a bit going on that probably isn’t visible to everybody,” Fife told The Straight.

“Ideally, I would have liked to have seen the stables built and occupied before I left …  but I know the wheels can turn a bit slow with council having to approve a modified DA and (engage) with the consultation process.”

Fife has spent the past decade as chief executive, having started as a raceday casual before taking up a part-time role.

“I’ve been here a quarter of a century, which is a long time with one employer, so it’s been a hard decision because of that length of time and seeing the club progress,” she said.

“It hasn’t been an easy call, that’s for sure.

“I’ve had a very supportive board, and that can be hard when you’ve got 10 bosses, but not in my case. 

“They’ve all been on the same page with the same vision, and sure, we might not always agree totally … but we always come up with a united decision.”

Of the 10 members who sit on the Goulburn board, four are independent directors appointed by Racing NSW.

Asked if she intends to stay in the role until a successor is appointed, Fife said: “I’d like to, yes.

“And the board would like me to as well  … to make it as seamless as I can. 

“There is no way I would leave the club without a CEO at this point in time when there’s a fair bit going on.”

The appointment of a new chief executive is likely to be made in consultation with Racing NSW, following a Goulburn board recommendation.

Under the Racing NSW deal, the racecourse land has been leased back to the club at a nominal rent, commonly referred to as a “peppercorn lease”.

Opened in 1999 on the northern outskirts of Goulburn, the racetrack stages about 20 meetings during the season, drawing on a pool of horses from the Sydney metropolitan area, the NSW south coast and the Riverina region.

Despite emerging trainer Danielle Seib shifting her stable to Canberra in November to allow for an expanding team, about 100 horses are trained on the track.

Existing Goulburn trainers are expected to apply for boxes in the new stabling area, but expressions of interest from outside the racing centre are likely to be considered.

Goulburn is one of the latest property acquisitions in a bulging Racing NSW real estate portfolio.

Racing NSW also owns the precinct on which the Scone racetrack sits, while it has also acquired the Tuncurry-Forster and Moruya sites.

At the time of the Goulburn sale, the regulator said its property strategy was designed to keep the NSW racing industry’s assets out of the hands of developers.