Leading trainer Peter Lagogiane is leaving Australia next week to take up a role training greyhounds for a Crown Prince in Dubai.
Lagogiane, 43, will be in charge of Crown Prince Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum’s 28 greyhounds, most of which have been imported from the UK and Ireland. The Crown Prince comes from the same family who run and operate the huge Goldophin thoroughbred stable across all corners of the globe.
“As with thoroughbred racing in Dubai, there is no betting on the greyhound races,’’ Lagogiane said this week.
“At present the prince, his relatives and friends test their greyhounds against each other, sometimes competing for prizes of luxury cars.
“The facilities at the two greyhound tracks in Dubai are state of the art and there is a world renowned veterinary surgeon permanently on hand.’’
Landing the contract to be private trainer to the Crown Prince caps a remarkable rise for Lagogiane, who was a house painter before becoming a greyhound racing professional eight years ago.
“I grew up with greyhounds as my father and uncle were hobby trainers and by the time I was 14 I had saved enough money through working before school at my uncle’s bakery to buy my first greyhound,’’ Lagogiane recalled.
Sydney-based Brian Barrington, who has built 40 greyhound tracks around the world, constructed Dubai’s first course, including the mechanical lure mechanism and automatic starting boxes, on the edge of the city centre.
“Because they also race saluki hounds, the prince and his associates insisted I create a huge track with a circumference of 1,020 metres, the biggest in the world,’’ Barrington said this week.
“I showed them what needed to be done and they built a replica second track alongside the thoroughbred racecourse.’’
The thoroughbred track is home to the world’s richest horse race, the $10 million Dubai World Cup, held annually in late March.
And while the sport is in its infancy in Dubai, Barrington said the Crown Prince has already spoken of hosting a rich invitation race for the world’s best greyhounds.
“His people are so meticulous that while recently working on maintenance at Bathurst dog track I got a call from Dubai asking me to fly over to repair a broken lure-driving cable,’’ Barrington said.
“When I pointed out that anyone connected with ship-building there could mend the cable in a few minutes, they still insisted I fly over and do the job.
For more on Lagogiane's big move make sure you read this week's Sunday Telegraph.
