YORK Racecourse has revealed the extent of its major security preparations for the city's biggest sporting event of the year this weekend, and rejected claims that it is responsible for trouble in the city.

The racecourse will pay for 58 police officers to support its own 180 security stewards at the course when up to 40,000 spectators attend the John Smith’s meeting on Saturday.

Spokesman James Brennan said staff at the course's bars and restaurants had all received comprehensive and intensive training, and were aware of the need not to serve to anyone who was, for example, under age or drunk; they also had to log why each customer had been refused service.

He said the racecourse did not condone antisocial behaviour and the course did not feature promotions such as 'happy hour' to encourage drinking, which happened elsewhere in the city. A pint of beer also cost £4.10 and free tapwater was available at all bars.

With 100,000 people having already attended meetings so far this year, only one person had been arrested for anti-social behaviour and the racecourse had also been told verbally that it had passed a licensing audit conducted by City of York Council at a race meeting in June.

Mr Brennan said some people had suggested that the racecourse should contribute towards the cost of policing in York after race meetings, but he pointed out that it already paid almost a million pounds a year in rent and business rates to the council, and a study in 2009 had shown that it gave a £58 million annual boost to the city's economy.

He queried how far its responsibilities stretched, asking: "Would they go as far as policing someone returning home to Leeds after spending an evening in York after attending the races? " he asked.

He also felt the racecourse sometimes took the blame for antisocial behaviour in York that had no connection with its meetings, and were more of a societal problem.

"People blame 'drunken racegoers' for antisocial behaviour in the city centre, but sometimes those responsible have not been anywhere near the racecourse. And anyhow, would someone who bought alcohol from a supermarket and then became drunk and antisocial be described as a 'drunken supermarket shopper'?"

A North Yorkshire Police spokeswoman said she hoped a media briefing about Saturday's policing operation would be given later in the week, but there was a 'structured and planned operation' around any event requiring police resources.

"This is done in partnership with the event owners who also put in place their own plans," she said. "All plans are scaled against a number of categories based on attending numbers, specific intelligence and previous recent event history."