Sydney Everest Carnival launches with successful Long Lunch
Over $45,000 raised for Spinal Cure Australia
September 6, 2023
Held in the WINX Stand of Royal Randwick, the Sydney Everest Carnival Long Lunch brought together the very best in entertainment, fashion, hospitality, and racing guests – coming together to support a worthwhile cause with charity partner SpinalCure Australia and placing Sydney firmly on the global stage for exciting, live events.
Throughout the afternoon, guests were treated to a feast for the senses with a backdrop to match. Commencing with a live string quartet and aerial silks show, guests then enjoyed an arrival drink served from a picturesque Moët & Chandon champagne tower.
Long dining tables which had been obscured from view were then revealed, adorned with bright and striking seasonal florals and an aerial acrobatics performance, directed by Julie Scerri.
Sitting down to lunch, guests at the Sydney Everest Carnival Long Lunch were among the first in Sydney to experience the bespoke menu prepared by Australian Turf Club’s new Executive Chef at Royal Randwick, Craig Knudsen. Hosted by Channel 7’s James Tobin, inspirational words were shared by SpinalCure Ambassador Sam Bloom and her husband Cameron Bloom on their incredible story which was inspired by the Australian film ‘Penguin Bloom’ produced by and starring Naomi Watts.
In addition to this celebration, the event was devoted to supporting a worthwhile cause – entering the second year of a charity alignment with the Australian Turf Club Foundation and SpinalCure Australia – dedicated to funding pioneering research into treatments for spinal cord injuries for over 200,000 Australians living with a spinal cord injury.
“We are thrilled to be the charity partner at the Sydney Everest Carnival Long Lunch, continuing our partnership with the ATC Foundation,” says SpinalCure Australia CEO Kathryn Borkovic. “It is great to see the racing industry come together in support to raise awareness about the life-changing potential of Project Spark.”
Sydney’s leading luxury jewellery house Cerrone generously donated a one-of-a-kind London blue topaz, white gold, and diamond necklace (valued at $32,000) as the top prize for the charity raffle, joining a range of other sought-after pieces including a Longines Dolce Vita timepiece and tickets for the sold-out Taylor Swift live concert in Sydney alongside a wide array of other covetable experiences, collectibles, and prizes.
“The Sydney Everest Carnival is without a doubt one of the most incredible events in Australia. With an abundance of colour, an extraordinary amount of prize money and a true spirit of celebration for the thoroughbreds and the spirit of racing – we welcome everyone to the track to be part of the extraordinary experience of the Sydney Everest Carnival,” says Australian Turf Club Director Angela Belle McSweeney.
The Sydney Everest Carnival Long Lunch was proudly held in partnership with Racing NSW and made possible with the support of partners including Moët & Chandon, TRESemmé, James Squire, Petaluma Wines, Cerrone and the ATC Foundation.
With the 2023 Sydney Everest Carnival now officially underway, Australian Turf Club celebrates an exciting season of Spring Racing in Sydney – with the first official raceday of the Carnival – the brand new ‘Sydney Surf to Turf Day’ at Royal Randwick – to be held on Saturday 16 September 2023 in a celebration that is uniquely Sydney.