Racing ‘can’t risk bad press’ by returning too quickly says former jockey Andrew Thornton

The former Cheltenham Gold Cup-winning jockey was speaking after making a successful recovery after being “knocked sideways” by Covid-19.

Thornton – who partnered Cool Dawn to Gold Cup glory in 1998 – was amongst those racegoers laid low in the wake of last month’s National Hunt Festival.

He’s not convinced that he contracted coronavirus at Cheltenham – the last national sporting event to take place in Britain before the Government’s lockdown came into effect.

But Thornton, who lives near Thirsk, is even more certain about the need for racing to act responsibly as pressure grows for Flat meetings to resume.

No racing has taken place since Wetherby’s fixture on March 17, but the sport’s reputation took a hit last week when a senior official at Ascot ventured on national radio that its flagship Royal meeting could still take place in June – even though no guarantees could be offered about preventing the spread of coronavirus.

And Thornton, who retired from the saddle in 2018 after a career which yielded more than 1,000 winners, says racing must be mindful of public opinion.

“I think racing has to be wary about creating a bad press,” Thornton, 47, told The Yorkshire Post. “I can understand people getting twitchy and pushing for a start, but we don’t want to create negative headlines by starting too early.

“Having been through it, and having experienced it, we have to be prepared to wait. In no way, shape or form can we jump the gun. We all have to realise that we are in a situation that no one could have envisaged and no one can envisage for now when it will be safe to resume.”

Even though National Hunt racing is on hold until July 1, the British Horseracing Authority was planning for Flat meetings beginning on May 1.

However this looks unrealistic – a decision is imminent – despite plans to create a number of regional hubs so some meetings could take place on successive days without the public being present.

Yet, with the Government planning to prolong the lockdown as the UK death toll nears 15,000, Thornton says it is a time for patience.

The ITV Racing and Sky Sports Racing pundit initially put his illness down to fatigue after covering the Cheltenham Festival and Midlands National at Uttoxeter. But he says that it soon became clear that he was suffering from Covid-19 symptoms – albeit with a fever kicking in before a tickly cough.

“The last week I have been just about back to 100 per cent,” said Thornton. “Where it came from I don’t know, but luckily Yvonne (wife) and Harry (son) have both managed to avoid catching it. I just tried to separate myself – I used a different bedroom and bathroom, I just stayed away from them.

“I struggled to get up before 1pm, I’d brush my teeth and walk downstairs and I’d be struggling to breathe. After about five days I started to improve, but I lost about three-quarters of a stone in 10 days as I just lost my appetite and everything tasted of salt. It made one realise how fit you have to be as a jockey.

“I’d never missed a day of work in 28 years through illness, but I definitely wouldn’t have been going to work.”

Thornton’s spirits were, however, lifted by North Yorkshire rider Brian Hughes, 34, becoming the North’s first champion jump jockey in 40 years.

Hughes, 34, was clear of defending champion Richard Johnson when the 2019-20 season came to a premature end. “It’s a fantastic achievement for him to be champion jockey,” added Thornton.

“He’s only third jockey to win it in 25 years after AP McCoy and Richard Johnson, and if you go back even further, there’s not that many names on it since the late 1970s as John Francome won it seven times and Peter Scudamore had eight.

“It’s the fourth year he’s had over 140 winners too. It works well for him that Donald McCain’s horses seem to start the season well and then Nicky Richards’s come into their own when the ground gets a bit more testing.

“He’s got some good relationships with the likes of Ruth Jefferson and Brian Ellison – his strike rate for him was amazing. It’s great to see him win it.”

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