The 160th running of the R2 million Gr1 Cape Town Met at Kenilworth on Saturday 29 January 2022 will be sponsored by World Sports Betting.
With the news that Vodacom will call time on their Durban July sponsorship after the running of the 2022 renewal, the fact that a sponsor has finally been secured for the Cape flagship, will be good news.
The dual Met winner Rainbow Bridge (Pic – Chase Liebenberg)
Racing is going through a torrid time and after covid struck in 2019, the Met stake was reduced to R3 million for the 2020 renewal, and to R1 million for the 2021 renewal. This despite approaches from a major industry player in late 2020.
The first recorded winner of the Metropolitan Mile, as it was originally known in 1883, was Sir Hercules and, while the race had a chequered existence for many years in the early 1900’s, by the 1960’s it was firmly established as one of the ‘big three’ races in the country along with the Vodacom Durban July and the Summer Cup in Gauteng.
The race really came alive for those outside of racing circles in 1978 when J&B stepped in as sponsor
With a stake of R50 000 that year and a sensational finish, the large crowd was thrilled and the foundation was set for the development of the J&B Met into a massive racing and entertainment spectacular.
Due to legislative and policy changes, J&B ended their sponsorship after 39 great years following the 2016 renewal.
Sun International stepped in next and from 2017 to 2020 it was run as the ‘Sun Met’.
The Glam Garden is the official theme to one of the Mother City’s most celebrated and prestigious social events.
The publicity blurb suggests that we ‘celebrate in sophisticated hospitality and elegance, a nirvana of high-end fashion. The day features 11 races ridden by our nation’s finest jockeys on our country’s top horses, as well as live performances from local artists’.
- Final supplementary entries close at 11h00 on Monday 10 January, when weights will be published.
- Declarations are due by 11h00 on Wednesday 19 January.
- Barrier Draws will be done electronically by the NRB on the same day.
