A report recommending 19 horse-racing venues "leave the network entirely" has delivered good news for the Rangiora Harness Racing Club.

The Project Stamina report, which was released last month, names seven New Zealand racing venues which would no longer hold race meetings, if the recommendations come to pass.

But the report is welcome relief for the Rangiora Harness Racing Club, as only a few years ago it faced an uncertain future when the controversial Sapere Report recommended that the racecourse be “`disposed of'' after the 2023-24 racing season.

Club president John Woolcott says he is pleased the future of the club is looking positive but he feels sorry for the other clubs facing uncertainty.

“We are delighted that now we can get back to our core business of horse racing, with our next meeting on Sunday, August 23," he says. It holds 11 race meetings at the Rangiora Racecourse annually.

However, the Project Stamina report does say that discussions regarding the ownership of Rangiora Racecourse are required.

At the moment the racecourse is jointly owned between the Canterbury Jockey Club and the Rangiora Harness Racing Club, but John says he is “confident that this issue can be worked through and will be resolved as the two clubs have a good working relationship’’.

Those facing the axe include one of New Zealand’s most historic and prestigious thoroughbred racetracks, Trentham, in Wellington. The six others are Rotorua (thoroughbred track), Manawatu and Wyndham (harness racing tracks), Gore, Hāwera and Ōamaru (dual code race tracks).

Twelve others on the list of 19 are non-racing venues, which are only used for trials, training, or not at all.

The report, which was conducted by RCP consultancy firm for New Zealand Thoroughbred Racing (NZTR) and Harness Racing New Zealand (HRNZ), is described as “a long-term roadmap to create modern, sustainable racing and training venue network that will support the future of New Zealand racing’’.

It recommends retaining 39 venues, including Rangiora Racecourse, and holding a further five pending business cases.

Three of the retained venues, Ōtaki, Tauherenikau and Wingatui, would stop hosting harness racing but continue to host thoroughbred race meetings.

HRNZ chairman Grant Jarrold says the collaboration between the two codes was a defining feature of the project.

"This is not simply another review. It provides a unified direction that links strategy, investment and implementation, giving the industry greater certainty about the future."

However, the Project Stamina recommendations do not constitute final decisions.

Meetings will now be held with clubs directly affected by proposed venue changes, providing an opportunity to discuss the recommendations, consider local circumstances and contribute feedback before moving to an implementation phase.