British Horseracing Authority

The British Horseracing Authority will release an overarching plan for the sport of horse racing early next week, but in the meantime on Thursday it issued updates on a few areas: Apprentice agreements: changes to apprentice and conditional jockey and trainer agreements on the split of income and expenses, set to come into effect on Mar. 28, will be delayed. Whip consultation: a consultation by the Horse Welfare Board has been delayed to allow for a focus on the COVID-19 response. Early closing races: early closing deadlines have been temporarily...

Following the temporary shutdown of racing in the UK on Monday due to the coronavirus, industry leaders from the British Horseracing Authority (BHA), Racecourse Association (RCA), National Trainers Federation (NTF) and the Racehorse Owners Association (ROA) met Thursday morning to work on an assessment of immediate needs and identify funding available from government and industry sources as a priority. This is a change in the industry's coronavirus plan from allowing racing to continue behind closed doors. The BHA is also liaising with key departments in the government to ensure they...

Britain on Tuesday joined France, Germany, Italy and Spain in cancelling racing altogether in the midst of coronavirus, its shutdown set to last until the end of April. Today's meetings at Wetherby and Taunton will be the last before the cancellation takes effect. The British Horseracing Authority had announced on Monday that racing would take place behind closed doors until the end of March, but the picture changed when just hours later Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced a tightening of protocols including mass gatherings. "This is a national emergency the...

British racing will be staged at least until the end of March behind closed doors beginning on Tuesday as a precaution against the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic, with limits on numbers of essential personnel. Scottish racecourse Kelso had implemented a closed-door policy on its own accord for its Monday meeting to align with the advice of the Scottish government, and England and Wales will now follow suit. The widely expected announcement from the BHA brings British racing in line with protocols put in place by Ireland and Germany. Italy has cancelled...

Monday's meeting at Kelso Racecourse in Scotland will be contested behind closed doors, following the Scottish government's advice to delay the spread of coronavirus by cancelling mass gatherings. All Irish racing is closed to the public until Mar. 29, and France Galop put a similar measure in place on Friday, while Osarus postponed his breeze-up sale by five weeks. Britain has not yet barred spectators from any race meetings. The British Horseracing Authority issued a statement on Friday that read, "British racing continues to be in close contact with the...

The British Horseracing Authority will conduct breath testing of riders at British racecourses from Feb. 17 in a move away from the practice of having an external supplier conduct the testing. From Mar. 1, new rules will come into effect allowing a more flexible approach to breath testing. Chris Watts, Head of Integrity at the BHA, said, "This is an important and positive step in our testing procedures and will allow us to adopt a smarter and more cost-effective approach to testing. It will allow us to test more frequently...

The British Horseracing Authority is prepared to act--if the need arises--regarding any potential coronavirus impact on fixtures, including the Cheltenham Festival. BHA chief executive Nick Rust has confirmed an industry steering group is in place to consider the implications of the virus. Rust, speaking on a Betfair podcast, said, "We have an industry group in place that has been and continues to work on the potential impact of the coronavirus on the horse racing industry as a whole. "The BHA executive met with the team at Cheltenham Racecourse on Monday...

British racing's Horse Welfare Board-an independently chaired organization comprising the British Horseracing Authority, racing's stakeholders and the Racecourse Association-has released a five-year welfare plan for horses bred for racing. The strategy focuses on the ambition that every horse bred to race should lead a life well lived, and the overarching themes of the plan are traceability, safety and well being, communication and the use of data. The whip is a prominent topic in the strategy, which calls for racing to make changes to the way the whip is used but...

Eight short films discussing some of the common questions regarding equine welfare were released by the British Horseracing Authority on Monday. The films, featuring National Hunt jockey Tom Scudamore and BHA vet Sally Taylor, cover some commonly asked questions about equine welfare like "What happens when a horse falls?" and "What is the life of a racehorse like?" The videos will be displayed on big screens and CCTV across British racecourses, beginning with Carlisle, Lingfield and Kempton Park on Monday. Previews of the eight videos can be viewed below: What...

The British Horseracing Authority has expanded its online system of registering retired racehorses to allow trainers, in addition to owners, to lodge information on where their charges are headed for their second careers. Under the previous system, only owners had been able to register this information. The new system, which debuts on Feb. 13, is designed to improve the traceability of horses permanently retired from racing. A dedicated page on the BHA's website, which will go live in March, will allow participants to check the retirement status of any horse....

Southwell will host an all-female card on International Women's Day, Mar. 8. The eight races, held in conjunction with the sport's Diversity in Racing Steering Group, the British Horseracing Authority, Women in Racing and Great British Racing, will be split evenly between Flat and National Hunt racing. "It's great that Southwell are celebrating International Women's Day with an all-female racecard," said Southwell native and jockey Hayley Turner, who became the second female jockey to ride a Royal Ascot winner last year. We ride against and at the same level as...

Following the UK leaving the European Union on Jan. 31, 2020, an implementation/transition period lasting from Feb. 1, 2020 to at least Dec. 31, 2020 will begin, the Thoroughbred Industries Brexit Steering Group (TIBSG) announced in an update on Monday. Current arrangements relating to the movement of Thoroughbreds and people will operate as they currently do, as the existing Tripartite Agreement remains in place. European Union and European Economic Area nationals are encouraged to apply now for settled status beyond the end of the transition period. The priorities of the...