Harness Racing Victoria named Ballarat the Country Club of the Year in the "more than 16 race meetings" category.

Ballarat has dominated this award in the past decade.

This is the sixth time in eight years that the industry leader has been crowned number one _ all under the leadership of president Paul James.

He accepted the award at the Gordon Rothacker Medal gala night at Melton on Saturday night.

James said having the right structure in place and the right people across the board _ committee and staff _ with a good understanding of their jobs had been crucial in getting the club to the top and then maintaining a level of excellence.

He said the BDTC had long been willing to consider different ways of promoting harness racing to the general community

Maryborough Harness Racing Club secretary and owner-trainer Les Chapman was honoured with the Gordon Rothacker Medal in recognition of his outstanding contribution to harness racing over a sustained period.

He joins Ian McCallum, Geoff Hill, Jim Barker, Ron Pocock, Matt Donaldson, Peter Manning and last year's joint winners Bruce and Elizabeth Clarke on the honour roll.

Chapman, 61, is celebrating 50 years in the sport.

Initially a hobby trainer, he embarked on full-time training and breaking-in in 1968.

He has been MHRC secretary since 2000 and oversaw the development of the Redwood Trotting Carnival into one of Victorian harness racing's major events.