A COUPLE of years ago I was sitting in my office thinking about the vibrant state of Welsh horse racing and it struck me that there had never been an awards ceremony to recognise the talent we have across the country.

So last year we launched the Welsh Horse Racing Awards.

The event was well received and has now become part of the calendar of racing functions in Wales every year. This year’s date is Thursday, 28th November at Chepstow Racecourse. The awards have been sponsored by the Racehorse Owners Association.

There are categories including Top Trainer, Jockey, Owner, Chaser, Hurdler, Flat horse, Rising Star and Breeder. There is also an award for the Outstanding Member of Stable Staff in a Welsh racing yard, as well as a Lifetime Achievement award.

Shortlisted for Top Jockey are Sean Bowen, Adam Wedge, James Bowen, Connor Brace and David Probert. This category has been sponsored by Cotts Equine.

For Top Trainer, the list of nominees includes David Evans, Evan Williams, Peter Bowen and Tim Vaughan. This award is sponsored by Gain Equine Nutrition.

The Top Chaser award has been whittled down to Potters Corner (Christian Williams), Drovers Lane (Rebecca Curtis), Gone Platinum (Dai Rees) and Dr Robin (Peter Bowen). This award has been sponsored by NAF.

The award for Top Owner will go to one of the following – Walters Plant Hire (numerous horses), the Down The Quay Club (Tobefair), All Star Sports and Jonathan Davies (Potters Corner), David Brace (Pink Eyed Pedro) or Ronald and Candida Davies (Bungee Jump).

For Leading Hurdler, the shortlist is Tobefair (Debra Hamer), Silver Streak (Evan Williams), Lisnager Oscar (Rebecca Curtis) and Lord Napier (Peter Bowen).

The Leading Flat horse nominations are Mr Top Hat (David Evans), The Daley Express (Ron Harris), Good Vibes (David Evans) and Bungee Jump (Grace Harris).

There is an award for Rising Star and this year it will be between Charlie Price, Jack Tudor, Ben Jones, Isabel Williams and Imogen Matthias.

Tickets for the evening are priced at £55 plus VAT and are available by calling Chepstow Racecourse on 01291 622260.

There are two fixtures in Wales next week. Chepstow race on Wednesday, 20th November and Ffos Las on Friday, 22nd November. Both courses then hold Christmas Party race days on Saturday, 7th and Monday, 16th December respectively.

Looking further ahead, we are delighted that Sir Bryn Terfel and Rebecca Evans will be singing the Welsh National Anthem on Coral Welsh Grand National day at Chepstow on Friday, 27th December. Tickets for the biggest race meeting of the year in Wales are now on sale from £27, with hospitality starting from £119 including VAT. All the details are on the website.