More people than ever are going to the races

Last year's Panorama expose on alleged corruption in the sport brought out the merchants of doom who predicted that public confidence would dissolve and fans would abandon the sport in droves.

In fact, crowd numbers have risen, continuing a trend of the last few years, and betting turnover is up.

Racecourse attendances exceeded 3.7 million in the first seven months of this year, up 8.2% on the comparative figure for 2002.

The average daily racecourse attendance up to the end of July was 5,141, representing a year-on-year increase of over 4%.

Racing has often been accused of being stuck in the past and not making any effort to attract new audiences but there are signs the sport is entering a more modern era.

SOME OF THE WINNERS Chester: Record 45,641 flocked to August Sunday fixture; crowds topped 20,000 on six of seven racedays York: Ebor meeting attracted 83,560, up 6.5% on last year - Thursday attendance the biggest ever Haydock: Crowds up 15% in summer; 13,000 turned up for June card, even though it clashed with Derby Day

Sandown laid on a range of features, including massages and make-up demos, designed to attract more women to its Eclipse meeting in July.

Over a dozen courses now have a Ladies Day while Gay Pride used a Brighton meeting in July to hold a fundraising event and many tracks now have special clubs for children.

Concerts after racing, featuring the likes of Atomic Kitten and Jools Holland, are also now regular features at summer meetings.

Discover Racing, the British Horseracing Board's marketing campaign to attract a new breed of racegoers, has been the subject of criticism within the industry but there are signs it is starting to bear fruit.

Chester hails record crowd

There have been record bookings through its ticketing call centre with more than a quarter of the 30,000 tickets sold from January to July 2003 bought by first-time racegoers.

Meanwhile, on the track, it has been a vintage year for racing with stars such as Best Mate, whose special open day at his trainer's stables recently attracted more than 5,000 fans.

Bookmakers have reported record amounts wagered on the big races and there are more fixtures than ever before with both Royal Ascot and Cheltenham adding extra days to their flagship meetings.

Officials at Ascot, which also had record attendance figures this year, certainly believe racing is a healthy business, having given the go-ahead to a �200m redevelopment of the course.

It seems that horse racing's in-fighting, politics and scandals have little effect on the average racegoer - all they want is a good day out.