Is pig racing a sport? Swiss judges to decide

The Olma pig race occupies the Swiss judiciary Keystone-SDA

The traditional Olma pig race is not a sporting event and may therefore not be authorised by the city of St Gallen under the title of sports betting. This is the view of the intercantonal gambling watchdog, which has appealed to the Federal Court.

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The pigs racing at the Olma Food and Agriculture fair, Switzerland’s largest trade fair open to the public, want to get to the feed trough at the finish line as quickly as possible. The audience wants their favourite pig to win. And the Intercantonal Gambling Supervisory Authority wants the event to be authorised under the correct name in accordance with the Gambling Act.

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After the St Gallen administrative court rejected its complaint, the gambling watchdog appealed to the Federal Court. The latter upheld the appeal and ruled that the authority was entitled to check whether bets on the pigs were bets or lotteries.

Translated from German by DeepL/ts

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