Racing is back due to common goal within the sport, says Nick Rust

THE head of British racing is “exceptionally confident” about the sport’s return to competitive action today as Covid-19 lockdown restrictions are eased slightly.

Newcastle’s meeting – which will take place behind closed doors and under strict biosecurity controls – is the first fixture since racing took place at Wetherby on March 17.

The sport only received the final clearance to resume on Saturday afternoon from Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden who described racing “as first out of gate”.

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Two trials took place at Lingfield last week to ‘test’ public health measures.

Flat racing is due to resume at Newcastle today.Flat racing is due to resume at Newcastle today.
Flat racing is due to resume at Newcastle today.

“I am exceptionally confident we will be able to hold our heads up high about how the sport returns,” said British Horseracing Authority chief executive Nick Rust, who lives in North Yorkshire.

“I am feeling very optimistic for the resumption of the sport and very pleased for the 40,000 people in the sport that we can get going, and at the first opportunity.”

Rust, who announced his intention at the start of this year to step down in December, praised a “massive team effort” to get to this stage – and that the determining factor was “a commonness of purpose”.

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But he also urged racing’s participants to be respectful of the national situation and comply with rules – they even forbid jockeys from using racecourse saunas and showers.

Champion jockey Oisin Murphy is among those in action at Newcastle today.Champion jockey Oisin Murphy is among those in action at Newcastle today.
Champion jockey Oisin Murphy is among those in action at Newcastle today.

“We have got a great plan, but even with the very best planning, we need to make sure we carry it out in practice,” added Rust.

“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, as our revenue streams are reduced compared to the model we were operating before the coronavirus.”

Sensitivities are such that Rust was coy about the content of a tweet posted on Saturday by Health and Social Care Secretary Matt Hancock whose constituency includes Newmarket, which hosts the Guineas meeting from Friday onwards.

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“Thanks to the nation’s resolve, horseracing is back from Monday. Wonderful news for our wonderful sport,” posted Hancock, before being deluged with tweets questioning the Government’s priorities when scientists are urging caution over the lifting of the lockdown.

Meanwhile, a total of 369 initial entries were whittled down to just 120 runners for today’s Newcastle meeting.

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.

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.

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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.

“There’s clearly been a huge amount of work that has gone into this and we’ve been well briefed.”

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O’Keeffe has four runners on the opening day of action, but newcomer Continental is very much his headline horse having cost owner John Dance £240,000 as a yearling.

Dance has compared the Acclamation filly, who hails from the family of Swiss Lake, with his former Group One star Laurens, so O’Keeffe is eager to see how she shapes up in the second division of the Betway Novice Stakes.

He said: “We really like her, she’s beautifully bred and she’s been working nicely at home.

“Obviously there’s a bit of depth to the race with Tim Easterby’s (Art Power) and James Tate’s (Magical Journey) in there, so it won’t be easy to win first time out.”

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Rebecca Menzies trains near Sedgefield and she has three runners heading to Newcastle.

She also does not anticipate staff having any issues with the new hygiene 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 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.”

Newmarket trainers are well represented, with John Gosden and Sir Michael Stoute fielding runners, and champion jockey Oisin Murphy will be in action as he begins his title defence.

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