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BHA Planning For Return Of Owners On Mar. 29

The British Horseracing Authority is planning to welcome owners and amateur riders back to racecourses on Mar. 29. Spectators are expected to be allowed back on racecourses in mid-May. This year's Cheltenham Festival and the start of the flat season on Mar. 27 will take place behind closed doors.

A BHA update released on Friday evening read, “Following the publication on Monday, Feb. 22 of the UK Government's plan to ease lockdown restrictions in England, the industry Covid-19 group has carefully studied the implications for racing in England. Any changes to racing protocols will move in parallel with the steps set out in the road map and are therefore dependent on the Government's timetable.

“Since the plan was published on Monday, Feb. 22, the BHA and senior racing executives have engaged with Government to agree how racing can unwind its own restrictions. At this stage [Mar. 29], racecourses will not be able to provide hospitality, and strict attendance rules will remain in place, including a health screening process. Further enhancements to the owner experience will be permitted from Step Two, which comes into force from Monday, Apr. 12 at the earliest. In line with the resumption of outdoor hospitality on that date, our goal is for racecourses to be able to re-introduce outdoor hospitality for owners, in line with Government guidance.”

The BHA is working on racecourses being able to host up to 10,000 fans under spectators arena guidelines, rather than 4,000 for outdoor events, when Step Three comes into play on May 17.

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Fans Return To English Racecourses

Racecourse Association Chief Executive David Armstrong described the return of limited spectators to four English racecourses on Wednesday as a “step in the right direction.”

Ludlow, Lingfield and Haydock welcomed racegoers on Wednesday afternoon, while Kempton had a small crowd for its evening card. All four tracks are in ‘Tier 2′ areas of the country as part of the government’s new system for identifying coronavirus risk levels, meaning they can allow up to 2,000 fans or 50% capacity, whichever is lowest.

Aside from two pilot events in September, Wednesday marked the first time fans have been allowed on English racecourses since racing’s resumption on June 1.

“It’s definitely a step in the right direction,” Armstrong said from Ludlow. “What I wouldn’t describe it as is a pilot or test. It’s a step in the right direction, but it’s a baby step.

“It is important here at Ludlow today, where 650 people will make it quite a good atmosphere. If you think about most racecourses, if they have 2,000 people, it is barely touching the sides–so it doesn’t yet get back to where we create the atmosphere or make it more economically viable. Those are steps that are still to come, but we have to start with a baby step and in the current environment, we are very fortunate to get the opportunity to bring this number of people back so soon.

“I probably wasn’t expecting it until after Christmas, so this is a bonus. But the real work is how we bring crowds back at a significant scale, because that is where the economics start to work.”

Armstrong said that as things stand right now and despite the financial hardships of 2020, he expects all of England’s current courses to be operating in 2021.

“There are some in a more fragile position than others and if in 12 months’ time the crowds weren’t allowed back, then I don’t think they would all survive, but I’m confident they all will,” he said. “We are seeing the first step of it today. We are on a journey to bring back crowds in sensible numbers, and once we do that, then they will all be fine.”

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Warwick Welcomes Pilot Crowd

Warwick Racecourse welcomed a crowd of 500 annual members and hospitality guests for its jumps meeting on Monday. It was only the second time since racing resumed from a nine-week shutdown on June 1 that a crowd was permitted on a British racecourse-Doncaster had a week-long pilot project planned for its St Leger festival but that was shut down after just one card due to tightened government regulations.

Trainer Christian Williams was among those praising the Warwick project on Monday, saying, “It was brilliant, I think everything has been run so well. I think we’ve advertised ourselves well, and it was just great to come in today and see the crowd here. It’s our sport, and it’s great to see people back at the races.”

Racing continues to hold its collective breath, however, with Prime Minister Boris Johnson set to make a statement on Tuesday in the wake of rising COVID-19 levels in the country.

Owners were allowed to return to Irish racecourses beginning on Monday, with meetings staged at Listowel and Fairyhouse. Part owner Darragh McDonagh was on-course to see his Politicise win the featured Liam Healy Memorial Lartigue Hurdle at Listowel, and he said, “We come to Listowel every year and normally we come Thursday and go home on Sunday, but today is strange. We went for lunch in Listowel and were considering staying down today if the horse won, so at least we have decisions to make.

“It is a strange atmosphere, but they are doing the best they can. We are all trying to do our bit to stay safe and we’re back racing, so we’ll take it.”

Fairyhouse’s General Manager Peter Roe said of the return of owners, “It’s a great step. It’s the first tiny steps, and we hope we can keep going. It’s great just to get a bit of atmosphere back here again, and great to see their enthusiasm. They pay the bills, keep the show on the road, and it’s great to have them back. They’ve come back to a different experience than they left beforehand, but I think everyone here is just delighted to get going again–we hope we’ll be able to continue.”

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