Ascot chief executive Douglas Erskine-Crum is looking forward to a 'great day' on Saturday despite a disappointing turnout for the Blue Square Shergar Cup.
Organisers had hoped to have 10 runners in each of the six events but at today`s declaration stage only 48 horses stood their ground despite their being a total of #400,000 in prize money on offer.
Only five horses were declared for the European Breeders` Fund Shergar Cup Oaks.
The Virgin Atlantic European Team will be represented by 25 runners with the Dubai Duty Free Rest of the World team having 23.
Five European reserves had to be transferred to the Rest of the World team because of the shortage of horses.
Nevertheless Erskine-Crum was upbeat about the day.
'We may not have filled every race with the maximum 10 runners but the overall number for each team is almost even and we are now all set for a great day on Saturday,' he said.
Organisers will now conduct a review to establish how they can improvethe tournament.
But Erskine-Crum emphasised that they were committed to the future of the Shergar Cup.
He said: 'Of course we are disappointed not to have more runners overall and especially more Rest of the World-owned runners.
'We will be conducting a comprehensive review of the event over the next couple of months, including consultations with owners, trainers, jockeys, the British Horseracing Board and other relevant parties, to see how we can make it more attractive.
'We always knew it would take time to establish a new kind of event like this and we remain committed to the future of the Blue Square Shergar Cup at Ascot.'
The timing of the event and lack of `black-type` status for the races have been pinpointed as problems by Erskine-Crum.
'We have identified a number of key problems this year in attracting runners,' he added.
'It has been a real challenge to frame races that will fit into the racing calendar at the height of summer.
'Though extremely valuable none of the races carry black type, something that has had a particular impact on the Oaks.
'A number of the big stables, which would normally have been expected to have runners in these high-class races, have had a quiet season by
their own high standards.'
The Shergar Cup has had a troubled history since it was introduced last year.
The first running of the event at Goodwood in May 1999 attracted a crowd of just 5,515 while an admission charge of #35 brought widespread
criticism.
