Newmarket Racecourses’ team is on track with top 2025 Racecourse Groundstaff Award

Members of the team responsible for keeping the turf at Newmarket’s historic Rowley Mile and July racecourses in pristine condition have scooped a national award.

Their win in the category for flat racing courses in the Racecourse Groundstaff Awards for 2025 will see them battling the other category winners – Newbury (dual purpose) and Kelso (National Hunt) – to be crowned the 2025 Champion Groundstaff Team at the 14th annual Racecourse Association Showcase Awards, at York Racecourse, next month.

Andrew Morris, head of racing and clerk of the course at headquarters, said: “It’s fantastic that Newmarket has been awarded best flat course.

“Alan Hatherley, along with the other members of our estates team, have done a tremendous job in balancing the demands of the Rowley Mile and July Course during an incredibly dry summer.

“The estates team’s commitment to the renovation of the July Course racing surface and embracing new technology been impressive and gives us a great platform for further improvements.”

Newmarket ground staff were recognised for their hard work and dedication during the July Course renovation. This saw the team reduce the height of the grass and remove hundreds of tonnes of organic material and plants trailing over the ground and then get the course back to peak condition, all during a limited growing window.

The judges heard the team – who are Alan Hatherley, David Franklin, Krzystof Barczyk, Patrick Calvert, Ben Barber, Luke Taylor, Steven Johnson, Edward Rudge, Przemyslaw Jeleniewicz, Gianluca Carriero, Thomas Borrowdale, Carl Norris and Matthew Murawskihad – also made changes to the course’s winners’ enclosure, increasing space for horses and their connections, and were leading the way in the use of innovative technologies, making date-led decisions with the use of wireless soil monitors.

A report from the British Horseracing Authority’s inspectors of courses, said: “As in previous years, this is a very competitive and high standard competition to judge, with many racecourses getting accolades and high praise from the panel.

“All courses deserve recognition for their dedication and hard work, especially in a year which has been very challenging from an agronomy point of view.”

Dale Gibson, racing director at the Professional Jockeys’ Association, said: “Every year countless groundstaff work tirelessly to produce a safe and effective racing surface for horses and jockeys.

“We witnessed an extended period of drought in most areas of the country over several weeks earlier this year, which meant many staff were challenged even more than usual.”