New Zealand Thoroughbred Racing's Bruce Sharrock has quit as chief executive and he will depart the organisation at the end of 2024 after more than two-and-a-half years in the top job.
Sharrock, who was appointed to the role in April 2022, will officially finish as CEO on December 31, but he will then stay on as consultant to NZTR for a further three months “to oversee the implementation of current projects”.
The timing of the confirmation of Sharrock’s resignation, coming days after the disastrous abandonment of Saturday’s Group 1 Hawke’s Bay meeting at Hastings, may be a surprise to some but the fact he has quit shouldn’t be.
There have been murmurs for months suggesting that Sharrock’s tenure as CEO was nearing its end.
NZTR, in a statement released on Wednesday, said Sharrock had resigned “several weeks ago”, meaning his departure is unrelated to the track issues at Hastings which led to the Group 1 Arrowfield Plate meeting being transferred to Matamata and run on Wednesday.
The appointment of Entain by the government to run the New Zealand TAB for 25 years, which came into effect last year, was made during Sharrock’s term as CEO and he has also overseen the implementation of numerous initiatives aimed at improving the appeal of the thoroughbred code, including the NZB Kiwi slot race, which is to be run for the first time next year.
Bren O’Brien
NZTR chairman Russell Warwick commended Sharrock for his leadership during a period of transformational change within the industry.
“Bruce has played an integral role in navigating the business through some challenging times in recent years, guiding the industry through the pressures of the back end of the Covid-19 pandemic and repositioning the NZTR offices and functions from Petone to Cambridge being just two examples of his leadership,” Warwick said in a statement.
“During his time at NZTR he has built a first-class team around him, and I would like to thank him for his commitment to the revitalisation of racing.”
Sharrock said the building blocks were in place to enable a bright future for New Zealand racing and it was up to the industry to “accelerate and capitalise on the opportunities ahead”.
“I joined NZTR with a genuine passion for racing and a determination to see us return to the glory days of the sport,” Sharrock said.
“I am immensely proud of what we have accomplished over the past 30 months, and feel the time is right to step aside and let the team continue to execute this vision for the future.”
