British Horseracing Authority

Owners will be able to start attending race meetings in a safe and risk-managed way in the UK on July 4, under plans agreed by the Racecourse Assocation (RCA), Racehorse Owners Association (ROA) and the British Horseracing Authority (BHA), the BHA announced on Monday. There will be two test fixtures-July 1 at Southwell and Kempton Park-to pilot protocols and allow for a thorough review of the processes in place to facilitate a smooth implementation, with guidelines to help owners adjust to new protocols and procedures available here. Owners will be...

Face covering regulations for jockeys have been revised, the British Horseracing Authority announced on Saturday. There has been a hot spell in the UK as summer begins. The new protocols are as follows: Prior to a race, jockeys are required to wear a face covering (which covers nose and mouth) from the time they depart the changing area in the weighing room. The wearing of face coverings during the race is recommended. However, jockeys are permitted to pull down the face covering in the moments immediately prior to the start...

David Sykes will step down from his role as the British Horseracing Authority's Director of Equine Health and Welfare before the end of the year. He will return to his native Australia for family reasons. Since joining the BHA in 2017, Sykes has been involved in the development of the Horse Welfare Board; the handling of the 2019 equine flu outbreak; the publication of a detailed review of safety and welfare at the Cheltenham Festival; the implementation of 30-day foal notifications and changes to the ways in which retired racehorses...

British racing resumed behind closed doors on June 1, and now, with these first weeks back going well and in accordance with the UK government's safety protocols, the British Horseracing Authority is working on a template to allow owners to observe their horses race on location. In a letter sent to racehorse owners on Monday by the BHA, the BHA's Chief Operating Officer Richard Wayman thanked the owners for their support in these challenging times due to the coronavirus situation and outlined plans for their return in the near future....

Racing in Scotland will resume behind closed doors on June 22 with a meeting at Ayr. It will be the first meeting held in Scotland since a spectator-free card at Kelso on Mar. 16. Racing is Scotland's second-most attended sport, supporting 3,400 full-time equivalent jobs and generating over £300 million annually for the Scottish economy. Nick Rust, chief executive of the BHA, said, "I am very pleased that Scottish racing is returning safely from next Monday at Ayr racecourse, ensuring that our truly nationwide sport can resume in line with...

All flat races will return to 48-hour declarations from Wednesday, June 24, the British Horseracing Authority announced on Wednesday. Declarations to run on June 24 must be made by 10 a.m. on June 22. For jumps racing, 48-hour declarations have also been put in place beginning on Wednesday, July 1, so declarations must be made by June 29. Due to the coronavirus, declarations had previously been required 72 hours before a race. The BHA's statement read in part, "This change is only possible due to the support of trainers and...

Jam And Mam (Ire) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}) was prevented from running at Doncaster on Sunday after one of the members of staff travelling with the horse failed a temperature check. Strict protocols in place on racecourses since the resumption of racing in Britain in June 1 mean all individuals attending a fixture must pass a temperature check, with a threshold of 37.8C. The Archie Watson-trained 3-year-old had been due to run in division one of the Read Andrew Balding On Betway Insider H. A spokesperson for the British Horseracing Authority...

The G2 Dante S. and G3 Musidora S. will be run at York on July 9 this year, the British Horseracing Authority announced on Tuesday. The two races traditionally act as Derby and Oaks trials respectively, but with the Epsom Classics taking place on July 4 that is not the case this season following various changes to the race calendar necessitated by the coronavirus shutdown. The Dante was originally due to be held on May 14, with the Musidora a day earlier. Click for the revised Flat and Jump programmes...

All British pattern and listed races will be once again open to international runners from June 15. For the first fortnight of the resumption of racing, foreign shippers have been permitted only for the three Group 1 races. Internationally trained runners and those transporting them will be permitted to enter Britain but must comply with government rules. There is currently no quarantine period required for persons arriving to Britain from Ireland-although there is a 14-day mandatory quarantine requirement for individuals traveling into Ireland-but those arriving from countries other than Ireland...

Bath's June 11th fixture has been transferred to Lingfield Park, the British Horseracing Authority announced on Thursday. The move is due to the recent sustained dry weather and the fact that Bath cannot have an irrigation system. Originally an evening fixture, the eight-race card will remain in that time slot and be conducted over the all-weather track. The race programme will be equivalent to the original Bath card and full details are available at www.racingadmin.co.uk. "Since the publication of the new fixture list, we simply haven't seen the rainfall at...

There will be nine more UK fixtures in June and July catering to horses rated in the 50s and high 40s, the British Horseracing Authority announced on Tuesday. Also emphasised during the new fixtures are novice races, with the updated British fixture list available here and an updated race programme through June 30 is available on the Racing Admin site. July's race programme will be published by early next week. The nine new fixtures are as follows: June 10 - Wolverhampton June 11 - Newbury June 15 - Kempton Park...

Racing will resume in Wales behind closed doors on June 15th, the British Horseracing Authority (BHA) and the Welsh courses announced on Monday. Chepstow will be the first track active, with summer Jumps racing at Bangor-on-Dee resuming in July and October sees the resumption of Ffos Las. The established protocols released for racing behind closed doors in the UK will be closely adhered to. "I'm delighted to see the return of racing in Wales at Chepstow next month as ensuring that racing gets back up and running in all three...