IRISH RACING CONTINUES: In a relief to many in the horse racing industry in Ireland, Horse Racing Ireland made the decision to continue racing behind closed doors on Wednesday.
We have seen five meetings behind closed doors in Ireland to date, and the reviews from trainers and jockeys have been excellent. After riding a winner in Down Royal, Robbie Power sat in his car until his next ride. The racecourses have been making great use of corporate boxes and private rooms as they focus on social distancing for trainers and jockeys, and the system has worked well.
There will be no evening fixtures or double meetings allowed, with no owners permitted to attend and no overseas runners allowed. There were two double meetings scheduled, on Sunday the 22nd and Sunday the 29th. Jockeys weights will also increase by 2lb from Friday at Dundalk, with all racecourse saunas closed.
By all accounts, Horse Racing Ireland have done a wonderful job and given that the Irish Government is allowing outdoor gatherings of less than 500 people, there’s little reason why Irish racing can’t continue once all the right procedures are in place. As always, a change of direction by government will likely take the decision out of the HRI hands – as we seen this week in the UK with the BHA.
Nicky Hartery, chairman of HRI, said: “These are unprecedented and sombre times and we are seeking the best ways to support the racing community and industry throughout what lies ahead.
“Health and welfare of employees and industry participants is the prime consideration and within that context, we have introduced protocols which can allow racing to continue and thousands of families who rely on the sector to maintain a livelihood.
“This will be kept under review on a daily basis and we are also planning measures for reprogramming fixtures as it becomes required. Changes to the programme will be separately announced.”
We won’t forget how the 2020 Irish flat turf season started, that’s for sure. We might not see any exciting two year olds soon, but the hope is that Irish racing can continue behind closed doors until it is deemed safe enough to get back to normal.
Of course, the situation continues to be monitored at all times and if things gets worse in Ireland the HRI will have to backtrack. However, as it stands racing is on!
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