Racing Victoria has announced a new $500,000 sprint race that will highlight the inaugural Good Friday race meeting at Sale.

The Country Discovery over 1100m will form part of a $1.4 million race day which will rotate through country venues of Victoria on an annual basis while also supporting the Good Friday Appeal.

The new race will be run as an open handicap with a maximum topweight of 61kg.

Other highlights announced by RV include the $150,000 Country Oaks (2200m) for three-year-old and older fillies and mares, and two $150,000 finals of a new Country Trainers Series, one a 1200m Benchmark 70 and the other a 1500m Benchmark 70.

The Country Trainers Series will be exclusive to trainers who are licensed in Victoria only, had less than 50 metropolitan starters in Victoria in the 2020-21 racing season and less than five metropolitan winners in Victoria in the same period.

Another $150,000 race on the program is The Shooting Star, a 1700m Class 3 race for horses that have had less than 10 career starts, while a trio of $100,000 Benchmark 64 races round out the card.

RV Executive General Manager – Racing, Greg Carpenter, said RV wants the race day to become a destination event for country Victoria and one that showcases different regions around the state.

“In developing this new race day from scratch, our goal was to create a racing program that was attractive to participants, fans and holidaymakers alike, whilst also complementing the traditional schedule of races throughout the remainder of the Easter long weekend,” Carpenter said.

“There are many great things to discover when travelling throughout country Victoria and we hope to unearth a future star of racing in The Country Discovery which will headline the annual Good Friday race meeting and becomes the richest sprint in country Victoria.”