An independent review into the box draw process, commissioned by the Greyhound Welfare & Integrity Commission (GWIC) and Greyhound Racing NSW (GRNSW), conducted by Curby McLintock has now been finalised.

In addition, GWIC has conducted an analysis of betting transactions involving manual draws and whilst no integrity concerns have been identified, all recommendations to improve the box draw process made by Curby McLintock will be adopted, some immediately.

GWIC CEO, Steve Griffin, said the decision to conduct the review was made in January 2021, after some participants expressed integrity concerns.

“GWIC and GRNSW are committed to ensuring that racing is conducted with maximum integrity and both bodies were united in their desire to conduct a full and independent review into the box draw process,” Mr Griffin said.

“Whilst the review identified potential vulnerabilities, no evidence was found that indicated the integrity of the process had been compromised. The recommendations from the review, when fully implemented, will strengthen the protocols around the box draw process eliminating the potential for manipulation”

“One of the key recommendations of the review was to introduce oversight by GWIC’s Director of Race Day Operations (Chief Steward) of any redraw processes, and this will be implemented immediately.”

The review included an examination of the GRNSW Grading Policy, interviews with GRNSW grading staff and extraction and analysis of data from the OzChase system from 1 January 2016 to 10 March 2021. During this period, it was found that only 0.6% of races involved manual adjustment.

“Onsite walkthroughs were also undertaken, to look at scenarios like the ability to enable a manual box draw for races other than a final and the ability to redraw races multiple times for a greyhound to obtain a more favourable box draw,” Mr Griffin said.

“An analysis of wagering on all races that were subject of a redraw was also conducted by GWIC. The examination of betting data on these races did not reveal any wagering anomalies or integrity concerns.”

“Finalisation of the review was delayed as some data held by other agencies was not readily available for analysis in an accessible format.”

GRNSW CEO, Tony Mestrov, said that both industry bodies were satisfied the Curby McLintock Review and the betting analysis carried out by GWIC did not reveal any inappropriate conduct on behalf of those responsible for the box draw process.

“Overall, GRNSW is pleased with the outcome of the review, and specifically the determination that there have been no issues with previous box draws or instances where integrity has been compromised as a part of drawing boxes for races. However, we note that the review did identify the potential for vulnerabilities in the process and the information technology system that supports it,” Mr Mestrov said.

“That’s why we’ve taken steps to implement the recommendations, particularly regarding redraw oversight, effective immediately, with further system updates to be made to OzChase as soon as possible.”

To view the full report, visit the Commission’s website.