Chris van Niekerk

“You dream of it, but when you taste it it’s even better than the dream. Unbelievable. I can’t tell you how I feel”. And then the wonderful sound byte that will endure for the decades, “I will remain a fool and buy more!” So said Chris van Niekerk on the July podium in 2012 and with CTS’s inaugural Johannesburg Select Yearling Sale just around the corner, he is inviting all dreamers to join him at Emperor’s Palace on Saturday, 18 April to buy a few more.

The charismatic Chris van Niekerk appeared on the racing landscape nearly two decades ago. He has enjoyed a meteoric rise with two July winners, an international track star in National Colour and shares in our champion stud farm to his credit, as well as heading up one of our top sales companies. With his dapper sartorial style and impeccable coiffure, Chris has an energy and air of devilish mischief that belies his years. Possessed of oratorical skills to rival Mickey Goss, and an equally deadly sales pitch, Chris has turned the job of sales host into an art form.

About Chris

Christiaan Johannes Hattingh van Niekerk was born in Volksrust and grew up in the KZN town of Vryheid. After obtaining a BA degree, his vocational path took a rather scenic route, meandering via teaching and shoe making, before he turned his prodigious skills to business management. The rest, as they say, is history.

Chris was introduced to racing by way of a partnership with Ashley Rushton and took out his first set of individual colours in August 1998. Interestingly, his first set of silks was silver-grey with a blue spot, maroon sleeves and a blue cap. Chris explains, “I went to the NHRA book and didn’t know you could have your own input, so I found what was closest to my idea. I must tell you, it didn’t look too good!”

When he decided to get more serious about his racing, Chris set about looking for a new trainer and famously made three phone calls. As the story goes, the first two went unanswered and his third call was to Sean Tarry. Happily, Sean picked up.

A change of trainer merited a change of colours and Chris goes on “When I joined Sean I changed the colours. I told him what I had in mind which was based on the whole feng shui approach. It’s yin and yang. A red sun is the sign of the horse and the blue represents water. I told Sean that’s what I’d wanted, but couldn’t find it. He told me how to apply to have things changed and I applied and got it passed. And that’s where the colours come from.”

The pair has grown into a formidable partnership over the years and those famous yin and yang colours have lifted most of the big race trophies available on the South African calendar, including the landmark July win in 2013 when S’manga Khumalo became the first black jockey to win South Africa’s premier handicap. Chris has also tasted international success with his star filly National Colour, flying the flag high in Dubai and England before retiring to stud in Australia.

Horses

Being a homebred, and also his first July winner, Pomodoro is very close to Chris’s heart. The handsome son of Jet Master has taken up stud duties at the Champion nursery, Klawervlei Stud and his first crop of foals are expected later this year. Chris says, “He has had a good season and covered in excess of 90 mares for first book. He arrived quite late, so I think that’s very good. I’m very happy and he’s had good support. Now we wait and see!”

Heavy Metal unfortunately had an abortive trip abroad, but the good news is that he’s back on home soil and is safe and sound. Chris elaborates, “Sean’s got him sound again and we’re very happy with his last run. I think we can still have an exciting time with him over what’s left of the season.”

The Hangman has seen a remarkable return to form after his injury and long lay-off, recently notching an impressive win in the Gr3 King’s Cup. He finished 4th, 3.5 lengths behind Wylie Hall in the Gr2 Colorado King Stakes, which Chris rates as a good effort over the 10 furlongs. He says “Hopefully we’ll have him feature in the Durban season. I don’t know exactly what Sean has mapped out, but I’m hoping he’ll be competitive.”

CTS

Having served on the boards of Phumelela, the Racing Association and the Racing Trust, Chris set his sights on the sales arena. He currently occupies the Chairman’s seat at Cape Thoroughbred Sales which is just about to launch their brand new CTS Emperors Palace Select Yearling Sale. Since the inaugural Cape Premier Sale at Cape Town’s CTICC in 2011, CTS has become synonymous with innovative venues and of course, attractive terms and sales incentives. Their Select Sale is no different and will be staged in the gardens of Emperor’s Palace’s D’Oreale Grande hotel on Saturday, 18 April 2015. The catalogue boasts 123 lots and bidding gets underway at 6pm sharp.

Chris elaborates, “Our entry into the ‘Highveld market’ if you want to call it that, came about through Mickey Goss and doing the Ready To Run sale with him. Then the thoughts were ‘why not take it a step forward?’ We’ve always had in mind a select sale, so that’s where the idea came from. Having Bob Yearham and his team with us will, I think, prove to be very good and hopefully very exciting. The sale is being held in the gardens at the D’Oreale, Bob is arranging for some of his gambling high rollers to be part of the sale and I think it could be very interesting. It’s a way of introducing gambling minded individuals to horse racing for the first time and it’s the sort of combination that I’m looking for.”

Asked whether there’s ever a conflict between his position at the head of a sales company and his position as a prospective buyer, Chris chuckles, “From a company point of view, we want the highest prices, of course. From a buyer’s point of view, you want to buy cheaply. It’s always a dichotomy.”

How does team Tarry & Van Niekerk select potential purchases? “I find sales and the auction atmosphere very exciting, but I’m a bit foolish and tend to like them all, so I leave it mainly to Sean. He doesn’t look at the catalogue first, he looks at the horses first and then compares the conformation to the catalogue. Once we have a short list, then we look at the catalogue and decide what we’ll bid on or not. I must say, he’s been pretty good with his selections. We’re pretty happy with our catalogue for the Select Sale. I think it’s a decent catalogue, but I’m not a fundi on that side.”

Too many sales?

“I must say, the jury is still out. We now have many sales in the country between us and the TBA. Some people have expressed concern that there are too many sales. I had a discussion with Susan (Rowett) and some of the (TBA) council members two or three months back ahead of Val de Vie and we decided that perhaps people are overreacting. If Val de Vie was good, then perhaps there is no problem. It’s simply providing more platforms for people to show and sell their horses and for people to buy. Competition has been good. I think both companies have raised game to the benefit of vendors and buyers.”

One Million Dollars

CTS’ one million dollar sales race has generated considerable interest in the local breeding and buying community. Chris says “The million dollar I think has been a good move on our part. We started off with one race – the 1400m for next year. Worldwide stats show that sales races start at that distance, but I was not personally very happy. I don’t like 1400m. Most courses in the country, if not worldwide, have a draw bias at that distance, so it’s not ideal. We’ve now split it into two – a sprint and a mile and I think it’s a good idea and has showed a positive response.”

The two new races, open to three-year-old graduates of the 2015 Cape Premier Yearling Sale, the CTS March Yearling Sale and the CTS Emperors Palace Select Yearling Sale, will be staged for the first time in 2017 at Turffontein Racecourse on CTS Million Dollar Day. If that’s not enough to whet the appetite, there is a $1 million bonus to any owner or partnership that manages to win both races. Chris has of course been quick to put the new innovation to good use, and was at his persuasive best at the Premier Sale cocktail party, advising buyers that with two races now on offer, they needed to purchase two horses!

Of course, it is important to note that only horses passing through the CTS ring qualify for the $1 million races – any horse subsequently led through the ring of another company forfeits its golden ticket. Chris explains, “It’s simply good practice to apply an advantage where one can. It’s a business approach.”

New screens

Another innovation to look out for at the Select Sale is the rolling screen keeping all the sale figures up to date. You can track the leading prices, buyers, vendors and stallions – a very useful way to have a real-time finger on the pulse on the sale’s progress. These were already in evidence at the March Yearling Sale and will be bigger and better by the time they get to Emperor’s Palace. And of course for those who can’t make it, the sale will be available by live streaming on the CTS website.

In closing, Chris emphasises the plan to create an interesting and exciting platform and something new from both a selling and a buying point of view. He adds, “With the hospitality that we know Emperors is capable of, we promise all buyers and sellers a good time.”

Chris is fond of quoting Winston Churchill’s wonderful pearl of wisdom that ‘There’s something about the outside of a horse that’s good for the inside of a man’. If you don’t yet have a horse, CTS are keen to help you remedy that. But don’t forget – you now need to buy two!