The Department of Sport and Recreation hosted a successful Dundee July Rural Horse Race on 20 July, with record number of people attending this ever-growing event, ensuring it remains a regular feature in the provincial calendar for major sport events.
The extravagant and fun-filled Dundee July of 2013 was not only about horses, but it also provided an opportunity for young and upcoming local designers to showcase their design skills.
The rural horse racing event may have come to pass, but will certainly remain the talk of the town for months to come, not only for the locals in the northern KwaZulu-Natal. With visitors coming from different provinces and neighbouring countries like Lesotho, KwaZulu-Natal confirmed its status as a destination of choice for major sport events.
According to one newspaper report an estimated 40 000 people attended this year’s event, which also saw remarkable increase in the stakes which moved from R120 000 last year to over R310 000. The increased stakes will help both jockeys and horse owner prepare better for future races and take care of their horses.
MEC for Arts, Culture, Sport and Recreation Mrs Ntombikayise Sibhidla-Saphetha called on young people to pursue careers in different sport and stay away from drugs and alcohol abuse.
“Sport, not only plays an important role in ensuring a healthy and active nation, but it has also become an important contributor to economic growth. As the young people, we have to say NO to drugs and YES to sport,” Sibhidla-Saphetha said.
Local street traders were delighted with the amount of business that was brought by this year’s Dundee July and accommodation facilities were fully booked including neighbouring towns of Newcastle and Ladysmith. An independent research has shown that the Dundee July injects no less than R10 million to the regional economy annually.
Dundee July is a culmination of district events where a selection is made from top riders in different municipalities and graded accordingly.
Zululand District dominated this year’s race, winning four out of six races including the main race where the champion horse from Lesotho was dethroned.
