Horse Racing Ireland (HRI) has today issued a 77-page statement outlining its plan to resume racing across the nation, slated for a June 8 return.
Naas will host Irish racing’s return fixture on June 8, with the Tattersalls Irish 2,000 and 1,000 Guineas rescheduled for Friday June 12 and Saturday June 13.
The first two weeks will be all Flat racing, with jumps action resuming at Limerick on June 22.
The document revealed how Ireland will return to horseracing which will be conducted behind closed doors in phase one of the process with strict guidelines implemented across the industry.
“The new system of health screening will include the registration of every attendee at every race meeting, from jockeys, trainers, IHRB staff, to racecourse staff, cleaning staff and so on,” HRI chief executive Brian Kavanagh said.
“Everybody will be required to complete a baseline health screening questionnaire followed by a set of further screening questions every 24-hours before attendance at a race meeting.
“We have further strengthened the screening process with the installation of a thermal camera system to check attendees’ temperatures. Nobody with an elevated reading will be allowed entry.
“The infection control policy is such that all surfaces will be regularly disinfected both before racing and throughout the race day, all indoor areas will be well ventilated, and only those essential to that area are present.”
Jockeys will be forced to wear face masks around the track but are not obliged to wear them during racing.
Any foreign jockeys who reside outside of Ireland must complete a 14-day quarantine period before they are allowed onto an Irish racetrack. The same policy has been implemented for trainers and stable staff who “need to be in Ireland under self-isolation for at least 14 days before they will be allowed onto racecourse premises”.
HRI have also stated that persons over the age of 70 years old will not be permitted to attend return to racing as the Irish government and health services class them as high-risk citizens.
Racing has already return in France and German while Britain has also announced a return date, so too has Canada and popular tracks in New York have been given the all-clear to resume racing.
