Mark van Deventer has been refining his speed figures for thoroughbred racehorses over 25 years. He has long been intrigued by the intellectual puzzle of form study. There are many different methods of quantifying racing merit, though Andrew Beyer, creator of the Beyer speed figs and a wonderful writer for the Washington Post has always been his inspirational “guru.” So the figs that underpin Mark’s analysis use Beyer’s main concepts, and have been adapted to suit South African racecourses. Most races here are on the turf, with a few Polytrack venues recently added to the national schedule.

With a degree in psychology from the University of Cape Town and a love for travelling the world, he has worked variously in retail, tourism and sports coaching. The racing bug has proved compelling, so since 2013, he has settled into a career as a full time racing journalist.

He uses the insights gained from time-based analysis to convey well-researched handicapping opinions. Mark has worked as a TV presenter on the specialist racing channel Tellytrack, and still acts as a pundit doing eloquent previews and reviews via that medium.

He also conducts popular podcasts, twice-a-week previewing Cape Town race meetings for Interbet, South Africa’s renowned online betting exchange. Over the years he has built a reputation of integrity as an imaginative handicapper with the ability to unearth live runners at big prices.

Mark writes about the sport on a freelance basis for various newspapers, websites and magazines. His articles can be found on www.tabnewsonline.co.za or in various commercial dailies such as The Citizen or previously, the Natal Witness. He is a regular contributor to the International Racehorse Magazine, a glossy quarterly publication distributed worldwide.

He also handles media responsibilities for Cape Thoroughbred Sales, a dynamic bloodstock company that is transforming the approach to marketing potently-bred young racehorses in South Africa.

With the wonders of technology, Mark is able to follow the global racing scene from his Cape Town base. He lives in Camps Bay with his wife, Edina Sinanovic who is an academic, and ten year old son, Max.