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It takes a huge team to feed, care for and train steeplechase horses. Since the pandemic, and with events not allowed to have spectators, there has been a large decrease in equestrian events. Due to this, many of those employed in the industry face potential unemployment and financial hardship.

In an effort to help alleviate the hardship, the National Steeplechase Association has stepped up and is livestreaming events so that the horses may run and may still collect winnings, while spectators enjoy the sport from their homes.

“We wanted to provide a venue for the steeplechase/racing industry to be able to get horses out and receive some financial support in the form of purse money,” explained Dr. William Allison, co-chairman of the Virginia Gold Cup Association, the organization that oversees the Virginia Gold Cup and the International Gold Cup. “Thanks to the NSA, jockeys and trainers have been able to continue training their horses and have some livestreaming venues where they can compete.”

Earlier this year and throughout the spring, race meets were cancelled leaving the horse industry with unprecedented hardship. The steeplechase community came together to try to maintain the employment of more than 1,000 jockeys, trainers and many others on farms who exercise and care for the horses. The International Gold Cup will provide purse money for participants. Even more importantly, it will provide a viable and tangible boost to keep many working in the equine industry employed.

The equine industry is important to Virginia's economy. A 2018/19 report by the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services reported that the horse industry brings more than $2 billion annually in economic development to the Commonwealth. The report noted that there are more than 183,643 horses in the state that provide approximately 38,874 jobs. It also stated that there are 30.5% or one million households that contain horse enthusiasts.

“The viability of the horse industry is an important component for the Commonwealth's economy,” Allison added.

The International Gold Cup will be held with limited people on-site—participants and essential personnel only.

“We've worked closely with the National Steeplechase Association and Virginia Equine Alliance to be able to successfully run the Virginia Gold Cup this past June and it was successful. They are now assisting us in running the International Gold Cup,” Allison added. “It will be a bittersweet day without our loyal fans in attendance, but ultimately being able to host race day is a victory for us. We are hopeful racegoers will tune into the livestream.”

The International Gold Cup encourages race fans to tune in and celebrate with appropriate socially- distanced watch parties. Tailgate recipes and hat photos, in honor of the annual Hat and Tailgate Contests, can be shared on the VGCA facebook, Instagram, and twitter. Viewers can tune in to http://nsa.network.video/ to live stream the event on October 24 at 12:30 p.m. EST.

For more information visit vagoldcup.com.

The post Steeplechase: International Gold Cup Will Be Livestreamed On Oct. 24 appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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The National Steeplechase Association (NSA) announced Tuesday that the fall season’s first sanctioned race meet, The Foxfield Fall Races, will take place Sunday, Oct. 4 in Charlottesville, VA. While the races will run without spectators and under strict health and safety protocols, the NSA will livestream the races, feature commentary from the industry’s experts and strong competition by steeplechasing’s top horsemen.

In making the announcement, NSA President Al Griffin said, “This year has provided plenty of challenges for our sport, yet we continue to persevere. Despite the onerous regulations and protocols, we were able to run all of our races at Saratoga for the first time in a long while. We are in the process of indoctrinating a great group of young jockeys to American Steeplechasing this fall. Everyone is stepping up and making the most of our limited opportunities. Our fall live streaming opportunity is due to the generosity of our sponsors: Brown Advisory, Charleston Post and Courier Newspaper, Bruton Street (Charlie Fenwick, Charlie Noell, Mike Hankin) and The Virginia Equine Alliance. This unprecedented support will allow us all to view steeplechasing at a time when spectators are not allowed at the race meets.”

Steeplechasing enthusiasts are encouraged to livestream here at 12:30 p.m. EST. The races offer opportunities for a broad swath of the steeplechase community’s horses in training.

The Foxfield Fall Races will feature seven races with the sport’s prominent owner/trainer/jockey teams in the field. Although the races will be run without spectators, NSA owners and other essential horsemen and officials will be allowed on the property.

For more information about the National Steeplechase Association and the fall schedule, click here.

The post Fall Steeplechase Schedule, Starting Oct. 4, to Be Livestreamed appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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