Newcastle geared up as sport returns to Britain
10 RACES TODAY AS RACING IS FIRST SPORT TO RESUME AFTER SHUTDOWN
RACING makes its long-awaited return at Newcastle today – the first major sport to resume in Britain following the coronavirus shutdown.
Meetings were last held on March 17, when Wetherby and Taunton were in action behind closed doors, before racing was brought to an immediate halt.
Having received Government clearance on Saturday, racing will kick off the return of mainstream sport with a bumper 10-race card in the North East, ahead of a high-profile weekend featuring the 2000 and 1000 Guineas at Newmarket.
A total of 369 initial entries were whittled down to just 120 runners before any defections, as Gosforth Park stages the first fixture under strict protocols enforced by the British Horseracing Authority [BHA].
Only limited personnel will be allowed on course, with detailed hygiene and social distancing measures employed, along with personal protection equipment where necessary – including jockeys wearing face masks.
BHA chief executive Nick Rust said: “Our focus is obviously on returning safely and protecting all those taking part in behind closed doors racing, while also reassuring the communities that racing takes place in that the risk of transmitting the virus has been minimised.
“We’re all very passionate about racing and like the participants and anyone connected with the sport, we’ve all missed it.”
He added: “This is only the start of the beginning. We will need to work very hard as a sport to battle our way through the next six to 12 months.
“We are very, very proud that we are the first major professional sport that is back on the first possible day that we could have been back in line with the Government’s guidelines.”
The BHA has issued an extensive document outlining the guidelines and Middleham trainer Jedd O’Keeffe believes the governing body’s work should stand the sport in good stead.
He said: “I’m absolutely thrilled to be racing again – although there is a small amount of anxiety. We all want it to go well, as we don’t want anything to happen that would put the restart in jeopardy.
“There’s been so much planning that has gone into this and it seems very well thought out.
“It’s been very, very well laid out for us – we received a 33-page protocols document last week that we’ve all been reading and it’s incredibly comprehensive.”
Rebecca Menzies is relatively local as she trains near Sedgefield and she has three runners heading to Newcastle. She reports her horses to be ready for action, despite the long absence of racing in Britain.
She said: “We kept going through lockdown without Flat horses, not galloping them as often as we might, but we kept them cantering and they haven’t missed any work.
“It’s a little bit disappointing there’s not the programme there for the lower-banded horses at present, but I think the race programmers are looking at this.
She added: “We made quite a few entries for Monday and while only three got in, we’re just grateful to be back racing.”
Menzies also said that she does not anticipate staff having any issues with the new measures, as stringent cleanliness is part of every day stable life.
She added: “Racing staff are used to biosecurity measures in terms of dealing with simple things, like ringworm, and we are disinfecting things all the time.
“We all have the right PPE, and have done for a while, and all the staff have completed the online module required by the BHA – we’re all taking it very seriously, as you should.”