Peter V'landys

Peter V'landys is an Australian horse racing administrator. He is the chief executive and a board member of Racing New South Wales (Racing NSW).

Personal life

V'landys grew up in Wollongong where he attended Keira Boys High School before graduating in 1984 from the University of Wollongong with a Bachelor of Commerce degree, majoring in accountancy.[1][2]

In 2003 he married his wife Phillipa and they have three children, Katerina, Nicholas & Maddie.[3]

Racing administration

V'landys became involved in racing administration in 1988 when he was appointed chief executive of the New South Wales (NSW) Harness Racing Club. Under his administration, the NSW Harness Racing Club established several commercial enterprises that provided it with the broadest revenue base of any racing club in Australia.

During this period V'landys also played a role in negotiating the $1 billion privatisation of the NSW TAB and the restructuring of the racing industry's finances.

In 2004 he was appointed chief executive and board member of Racing NSW. In this role V'landys also sits as a board member of several other NSW and Australian racing and wagering industry boards.[4]

Career

Equine influenza outbreak

In mid-2007, the racing industry was brought to a standstill as a result of an outbreak of equine influenza. New South Wales was the worst affected state with all racing cancelled and the movement of all horses prohibited indefinitely.

V'landys assumed responsibility for the overall co-ordination of the industry's response to this crisis, and developed and implemented contingency plans to counter the effects of the outbreak, including negotiating a $235 million rescue package.

He also lobbied NSW ministers for the provision of further financial assistance which resulted in the provision of a $7.5 million grants scheme and the establishment of a special mortgage deferment scheme and a further one-off grant to help promote the industry following the resumption of normal racing activities.[5]

World Youth Day negotiations

Following the government's announcement that the World Youth Day 2008 would be held in Sydney and centred at Randwick Racecourse, V'landys coordinated the industry's planning for the use of the racecourse and the disruption which would be caused to the racing industry. This included negotiating a $40 million compensation package for the racing industry.[5]

Race field legislation

In 2008, as a result of recommendations by V'Landys regarding ownership of intellectual property rights, the NSW state government enacted race field legislation which allowed the NSW racing industry to generate significant revenue from interstate and overseas wagering operators who were using the NSW product to conduct their wagering operations. The governments and racing industries of other Australian states and territories also introduced similar schemes.

The legislation and its implementation were challenged in the courts by two major wagering operators. V'landys coordinated Racing NSW's legal defence against those challenges, and ultimately the High Court of Australia found unanimously in favour of Racing NSW.[6][7][8][9][10]

Trackside

In 2010 V'Landys negotiated the sale to Tabcorp of the Racing NSW future revenues from the Trackside computer racing game. This sale realised $150 million and allowed the development of new spectator facilities at the Randwick Racecourse.[11]

Recognition

In 2013 he was ranked with John Messara as the 40th of Sydney's most influential people[12] and The Australian ranked him 22nd of the top 50 people in Australian sport.[13]

V'Landys was awarded Member of the Order of Australia in the 2014 Australia Day Honours for service to horse racing.[14]

Tax parity

In 2015, along with John Messara, V’landys negotiated with the NSW state government for the introduction of legislation to reduce the rate of government tax on totalisator and fixed-odds betting through Tabcorp to bring it into line with the rate of tax paid in Victoria.

The Everest race

In February 2017, V'Landys devised a new race called the Everest, which was to be conducted over 1200 metres and carry prize money of $10 million, making it the richest race in Australia and in the world on turf. The inaugural Everest race was run at Randwick Racecourse on 14 October 2017. It attracted a record crowd to Randwick Racecourse as well as record betting on an NSW race.[15] [16]

Prior to the 2018 event, the race attracted criticism[17][18] from the Australian public and media after organisers of the event successfully lobbied for the sails of the UNESCO world heritage Sydney Opera House to be used as an advertisement for the race. Public backlash and protests against this proposal and government support of it were held at the Opera House along with submission of a petition with over 300,000 signatures collected in less than a week in October 2018, however the pre-race event still went ahead in a modified format[19].

References

  1. ↑ "Alumni Profiles – Commerce". University of Wollongong. Archived from the original on 18 May 2015. Retrieved 11 October 2018.
  2. ↑ Presnell, Max (23 June 2012). "Running hard on the people's diet". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 27 May 2013.
  3. ↑ Kytherian Newsletter Sydney (14 April 2014). "Detailed Biography". kythera-family.net. Retrieved 14 April 2014.
  4. ↑ "Board Members". Racing New South Wales. Retrieved 27 May 2013.
  5. 1 2 Cormick, Brendan (2 April 2012). "Racing NSW chief Peter V'landys is poised for the big fight with NSW Treasury". The Australian.
  6. ↑ Young, Craig (30 March 2012). "Racing's $100m windfall after court ruling". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 27 May 2013.
  7. ↑ Tabakov, Nick (31 March 2012). "Better betting Deal is a big win for all sport". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 27 May 2013.
  8. ↑ Presnell, Max (31 March 2012). "V'landys leads way, others must follow". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 27 May 2013.
  9. ↑ Thomas, Ray (31 March 2012). "Let the money flow". The Daily Telegraph (Australia). Retrieved 27 May 2013.
  10. ↑ Payne, Clinton (30 March 2013). "V'landys – 'the bloke that saved the industry'". Racenet.com.au. Retrieved 27 May 2013.
  11. ↑ Carson, Vanda (7 October 2010). "TabCorp to pay $150m for facelift at Randwick". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 27 May 2013.
  12. ↑ "Sydney's 50 most powerful people". The Sunday Telegraph (Australia). 3 March 2013. Retrieved 11 October 2018.
  13. ↑ "Top 50 Sports People". The Australian. 5 May 2013. Archived from the original on 5 May 2013. Retrieved 11 October 2018.
  14. ↑ Lehmann, John (23 January 2014). "Peter V'landys, awarded Member of the Order for services to racing, dedicates the honour to his parents". The Sunday Telegraph (Australia). Retrieved 31 January 2014.
  15. ↑ "The Everest: 'Bold and brash' race put Sydney back on the map". The Daily Telegraph (Australia). 16 October 2017. Retrieved 23 October 2017.
  16. ↑ Thomas, Ray (15 October 2017). "Speed thrill Everest moves on next generation audience". The Daily Telegraph (Australia). Retrieved 23 October 2017.
  17. ↑ Saunokonoko, Mark (9 October 2018). "Opera House brand guru delivers Everest-sized slap in face to Racing NSW". Nine News. Retrieved 9 October 2018.
  18. ↑ Pitt, Helen (9 October 2018). "Sydney Opera House 'action' to deflect Everest light show". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 9 October 2018.
  19. ↑ "How the Everest Opera House showdown will play out". news.com.au. 9 October 2018. Retrieved 9 October 2018.
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