MJC take a bold gamble
FOR the first time in its short history, the Macau Jockey Club (MJC) will clash with a race meeting in Hongkong later this month.
The MJC yesterday released their revised calendar for January and remaining on the schedule is a meeting on the Taipa sand on the night of January 27.
On the same night there will be a Happy Valley meeting on the turf as the Royal Hongkong Jockey Club catches up with the fixtures lost to the virus.
A MJC spokesman said last night: ''We had that fixture in the calendar from the start of the season and we have decided to go ahead with it.
''It is the Chinese New Year holiday period and there are thousands of holidaymakers in Macau.
''We feel that it is worth going ahead with it although it will be the first time we have clashed with a meeting in Hongkong,'' he added.
In fact, the MJC has scrupulously avoided a clash in which they could only end up the financial loser - but the New Year gamble is one that could pay off.
Macau is packed to the seams at the holiday period and remains so for at least a week after most Hongkong businesses have gone back to work.
Thousands of Hongkong people return from their annual visit to China through Macau and it can take up to seven days to clear the backlog at the ferry and jetfoil terminals.
With most holidaymakers flush with holiday cash, the MJC have taken a calculated risk but they are unlikely to lose by it.
