Champion greyhound Reggemite, pacer Royal Force and trainer Jim Hand join WA Racing Hall of Fame

Champion greyhound Reggemite, Miracle Mile hero Royal Force and harness trainer Jim Hand are the latest inductees into the WA Racing Hall of Fame.

The trio will join WA racing’s elite when they are inducted at a ceremony on June 30.

Reggemite won 34 of his 51 starts including seven WA feature finals and the inaugural Shoot Out at Sandown in 1998.

The Linda Britton-trained chaser was also the 1998 WA Greyhound of the Year, second beaten a head by Rapid Journey in the 1998 Topgun and a finalist in the 1999 Australian Cup.

“He was a great chaser and brought us a lot of joy,” part-owner Gary Weston, pictured with the dog, said.

“I’ve had dogs since I was 18 and I’m 77 now. Reggemite has certainly been our best.

“Up until he raced all my dogs were in my name, but he was the first my son Craig raced.

“Linda said he must be the lucky charm so he has been in every dog since.

“We’re very excited and humbled for him to be in the Hall of Fame.”

Royal Force won a host of WA features, including the WA Pacing Cup and WA Derby, before he became the second WA pacer to win the Miracle Mile in 1977.

The George Kennett-trained stallion won 27 races before standing at stud, siring 81 winners including Sinn Fein who won 31 including the Golden Nugget.

Hand was Perth’s leading harness trainer in 1943 and 1944 and was also known as the State’s biggest importer of harness stock when the industry was first established in Perth.

He also won two WA Pacing Cups and two WA Derbies and was the first trainer to have four starters in a Pacing Cup.