Horseracing in Europe on track for phased restart
HORSERACING officials across Europe are looking towards May as the month for a phased restart after bans against large public events were put in place due to the coronavirus pandemic.
BHA Chief Executive Nick Rust
Racing was suspended in France on 17th March, 10 days ahead of Ireland where meetings went ahead without the presence of owners and the betting public, and the same European country may be the first to start.
France Galop president, Edouard de Rothschild said recently after meeting with government representatives that he was not pessimistic about the resumption of closed-door racing on 11th May while the country’s governing body for racing later released a statement.
HRI Chief Executive Brian Kavanagh
“Representatives of the public authorities and of the industry have given themselves 48 hours to lay down the terms of an agreement which will allow the horseracing industry to deal with and overcome the impact of the current health crisis.”
Meanwhile British Horseracing Authority chief executive Nick Rust is aiming for a restricted racing programme to open sometime in May.
“We will be ready to return at short notice when it is safe to do so,” said Nick Rust. “We are balancing on a knife-edge to ensure we can return as quickly as possible while keeping the government and the public onside.”
Horse racing officials in the UK and Ireland are hoping to resume meetings, albeit behind closed doors
Horseracing officials across Europe have been in the midst of balancing public health requirements with an industry under huge economic pressure amid increasing hopes for resumption of the sport.
“The fact that some countries have kept racing, and some are now actively moving towards a resumption phase has to be positive,” said Horse Racing Ireland chief executive Brian Kavanagh. “We have based our decisions throughout with the national situation first, (but) if racing were to resume in other countries that would definitely be a positive.”
Restrictions in Ireland may be eased after the 5th May deadline; however, any public meetings have been restricted until September. Irish fixtures are moving towards a month of Flat racing, including the Irish 1,000 Guineas Classic.
“What needs to be remembered is we had a 10-day racing scenario (behind closed doors) out of which there was no evidence to suggest that Covid was in any way spread, in fact it proved to be a very successful trial, said Irish Jockeys Association secretary Andrew Coonan. “We will look at all protocols as to how we can ensure a safe environment for anyone who finds themselves in a race-day scenario. There is an array of facilities that ensure riders are at their optimum on a horse without being dependent on race-riding itself to bring themselves to that level.”
