Monday, 9 November 2009: The Melbourne Racing Club's search for this year's Sandown Classic mystery National Anthem performer from within the racing industry expanded interstate for the first time and the chosen artist hails from the Harbour City.
Well-known TVN racing commentator, Richard Callander, will swap the form guide for the song sheet and sing for charity when he performs the National Anthem before the running of the 122nd TMB Printing Sandown Classic at Betfair Park on Saturday.
Callander will be the fifth racing industry identity to take on the daunting challenge for charity since the concept was introduced in 2005. Trainer Wayne Hawkes set the recent Sandown Classic tradition when he sang in front of 12,500 race-goers four years ago, while the most recent was former group one jockey and now media personality, Simon Marshall, who sang the anthem as a duet with his wife, Sally-Anne, last year.
Each year, the Melbourne Racing Club donates a performance fee of $5,000 to a nominated charity and in 2009, the official charity of Sandown Classic Day is Cool Melbourne.
Cool Melbourne (www.coolmelbourne.org) is a state division of Cool Australia and it works to explain how our environment supports our way of life, how it is under threat, and what everyone can do to help. Cool Melbourne provides information about green energy and green events, pollution, climate change and global warming. Cool Melbourne can also show how to save water, how to reduce waste, how to go solar and how to save money in the process. It's not about sacrifice - it's about living smarter.
Whilst many believe charity begins at home, it would seem so too does the support for Callander as seven-year-old daughter, Jessica, has offered her conditional support.
"I didn't really want Dad to sing as he sounds pretty bad, but when he told me it would help the environment and educate people about how to look after it, I said ok."
“He has been practising, but he isn't getting better,” she added.
Callander‟s four-year-old daughter, Brooke, will remain tight-lipped until after the performance.
Since its inception, the Sandown Classic charity National Anthem performance initiative has raised almost $90,000 for various charities through the Melbourne Racing Club's performance payment and additional donations.
ENDS
