GOING TO THE DOGS!

Greyhound racing is facing an existential crisis with stadia closing and activists campaigning to have it banned in the wake of horrifying welfare scandals. Yet, as a new documentary reveals, supporters believe the 'ultimate working man's sport' must be allowed to endure

- DOMINIC BLISS

THEY ARE sleek, graceful, lightning-fast beasts, by far the quickest dogs on the planet. At top speed, greyhounds can reach an impressive 45mph. But across Britain, their role in sport is slowing right down. Shortly after the Second World War, greyhound racing was one of the UK's most popular spectator sports, second only to football, with an estimated 70 million punters passing through the turnstiles annually, and 77 stadiums in operation.

Nowadays, according to the Greyhound Board of Great Britain (GBGB), that number has dropped to below two million punters and just 19 licensed stadiums. The Welsh government is currently debating whether to ban the sport altogether in Wales because of concerns over animal welfare, while the Scottish Greens have proposed a similar ban north of the Border.

And this week, a new documentary film on greyhound racing, called Going To The Dogs, has been released in cinemas. It both celebrates the sport's position in British working-class culture and gives a voice to the animal welfare activists who oppose it.

"For me, the film is all about class, culture and community," director Greg Cruttwell tells the Daily Express. "Greyhound racing is the ultimate working man's sport."

Having immersed himself in dog racing to research the film, 65-year-old Cruttwell, from Aldringham in Suffolk, worries the sport is now facing an existential crisis, with stadiums regularly succumbing to property developers and activists campaigning to ban racing across the UK.

"I think greyhound racing has a chance but the jury is out on whether it's going to survive," he admits. "There's a skeleton of tracks left compared with what there once was. It's such a pivotal point right now."