Rockhampton’s The Archer will remain in Queensland’s Beef Capital for at least the next three years, putting to bed speculation the slot race would be moved to Brisbane.
Racing Queensland has agreed for the 1300m race to continue to be staged in central Queensland in 2025, with its prize money boosted from $775,000 to $1 million.
The regulator has also verbally committed for The Archer, which has a three-year history, to be held at Rockhampton’s Callaghan Park in 2026 and 2027, cementing its place as one of regional Australia’s richest races.
The Rocky Amateurs committee, which established The Archer three years ago, and the Rockhampton Jockey Club earlier this week announced an ongoing tenancy agreement that allows the 12-horse event to continue.
“There were a few anxious moments I guess around the licensing of the Amateur Race Club, being a tenant club and only racing one day a year,” Central Queensland Amateur Race Club’s Tony Fenlon told The Straight.
“Their (Racing Queensland) criteria had moved a little bit (in terms of) warranting licensing once-a-year race clubs.
“Unfortunately, we got tangled up in that but due to the fact that we're a fairly solid club, both financially and membership-based … and we were able to put our case forward.
“We were fortunate enough to be able to get a green light to continue on for the next three years.”
This year’s The Archer, won by locally trained horse Namazu, attracted trainers such as Peter and Paul Snowden, Matthew Dunn, Kris Lees and Edward Cummings as well as jockeys Tommy Berry, Josh Parr, Tyler Schiller and Robbie Dolan, Tuesday’s Melbourne Cup-winning rider.
Trainers Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott, Lindsay Park and Annabel Neasham also supported The Archer in its inaugural year when it was won by the Rob Heathcote-trained Emerald Kingdom in 2022. Ciaron Maher was among the trainers to have a runner in the 2023 The Archer, which was won by the Toby and Trent Edmonds-trained Alpine Edge.
“We've got other people within the state and intrastate that are involved in the running of the Archer that holds slots and it just attracts some, for want of a word, fresh blood to the area and to our local industry here,” Fenlon said.
“It's great prize money that gets distributed on the day.”
Eight of the 12 slots, costing $70,000 each, have been filled for next year and Fenlon revealed the Rocky Amateurs plans to raffle its slot at $100 a ticket two days before next year’s race on Sunday, May 4.
Alpine Edge wins the 2023 The Archer. (Vision: YouTube)
The club is taking expressions of interest to fill the four slot vacancies in the $1 million race, the richest in the state outside southeast Queensland.
“We were fortunate enough to be able to get a green light to continue on for the next three years” - Central Queensland Amateur Race Club’s Tony Fenlon
The Archer race day also draws between 2000 and 3500 people to the meeting.
“They're not Warrnambool numbers, they're not Cairns Amateurs numbers, but 3500 to the races in Rockhampton is a significant number,” said Fenlon, a former RJC CEO.
“We get significant sponsorship from the local community in regards to the race day itself. Bearing in mind it's only a once-a-year race day, the sponsorship and the support from the local community has been phenomenal over the past few years.
“We are expecting a quality field again next year based on that prize money increase.”
RJC chairman Rob Carr understands the importance of The Archer to racing in the area.
“Callaghan Park racecourse is the hub of racing in regional Queensland and The Archer has become the race on the annual calendar that everyone wants to win,” Carr said.
“We are very pleased that we have been able to formalise a mutually beneficial ongoing tenancy agreement for the Rocky Amateurs.”
