The International Cataloguing Standards Committee (ICSC) European sub-committee has announced a change to the treatment of point-to-point performances in Sale Company catalogues. Currently, winning British and Irish point-to-point performers are classified as runners, but not as winners in either the subject horse detail or the dam summary line. For all National Hunt sales from April 2023 onwards if the progeny of a dam has won a point-to-point in GB or IRE but the same animal has not won under rules the point-to-point only winner(s) will be referenced as point-to-point only winners in the dam summary line and/ or produce summary. Progeny that have won both under Rules races and in a point to point will continue to be described as a winner as currently.
Sale catalogues which are designated ‘flat’ will continue to not treat winning point-to-point performances as wins and not reference any progeny which were point to point winners only.
An example of the new style for National Hunt catalogue is shown below.
Point-to-Point Cataloguing Rule Change Example
Scenario; Anexamplemare (IRE) has had two progeny that have won rules races but one that won only in a point-to-point. The previous catalogue rule would have meant her dam summary line read:
Anexamplemare (IRE): 2 wins viz. winner over hurdles at 5, placed twice, winner over fences at 5 and placed; dam of 5 foals; 5 runners; 2 winners:
The new rule means that the catalogue output will change to:
Anexamplemare (IRE): 2 wins viz. winner over hurdles at 5, placed twice, winner over fences at 5 and placed; dam of 5 foals; 5 runners; 2 winners and 1 point-to-point winner:
Sale Company Styles and Retrospective Change
The rule change when implemented before the 2023 National Hunt Store Sales will be retrospective and include all point-to-point form held on the Weatherbys Bloodstock database.
In addition, European Sale companies have agreed that reference to point-to-point races in such summary lines can be styled in a catalogue as either ‘point-to-point’ or ‘PTP’ as long as there is a consistent style throughout one catalogue.
Simon Kerins (Tattersalls Ireland) and Nick Nugent (Goffs) both jointly commented: "This rule change gives greater clarity around the presentation of form in National Hunt catalogues. It addresses the clear anomaly whereby catalogues have listed any point-to-point performers to be runners for the dam, but do not consider a winner of such a contest to be relevant for the mare."