Horses get extra exercise early when the temperature rises | Emma Berry
The heatwave forecast to hit parts of Britain on Monday and Tuesday forced the cancellation of five race meetings over those two days.
The British Equestrian Authority (BHA) confirmed on Friday afternoon that Monday’s matches at Beverley and Windsor, and Tuesday’s meetings in Chelmsford City, Southwell and Wolverhampton will not take place under the red warning. unprecedented in extreme heat issued by the Met Office. These five routes are all in or near areas of southern, central and eastern England, where temperatures can reach 40 degrees Celsius.
BHA CEO Richard Wayman said: “The BHA’s number one priority in holding any meeting is the well-being of all involved, humans and horses. “After the Met Office issued the first extreme heat warning, we are taking reasonable precautions and making a decision as soon as possible to provide certainty to those affected. “
Arena Racing Company (ARC) owns three of the pitches that will lose their belongings – Windsor, Wolverhampton and Southwell – and the racing division’s chief executive, Mark Spincer, backed the BHA’s decision.
“We have been in close dialogue with our colleagues at the BHA during this warmer weather and have been working with a number of resources in place to support horses and those working on the fields,” he said. our race. While we’ve taken steps to mitigate higher-than-original temperatures for Monday and Tuesday, including moving Southwell’s race time to earlier in the day, the latest updates from the Met Office and the warnings released this morning make it clear that it is in the best interest of all involved to give up these belongings.
“We will be contacting all customers who have booked tickets to these race meetings shortly, and we would like to thank the BHA team for acting quickly in the changing circumstances.”
Chelmsford City racing director Neil Graham has a similar view. “As always, our primary concern is for the benefit of everyone visiting Chelmsford City Racecourse, both human and equine, and as such, we fully support the BHA’s decision. this determination under such extreme conditions,” he said.
Aborted meetings will not be rescheduled but the BHA has advised that it may add races to the schedule in the coming days to make up for those lost.
The heatwave across mainland Europe also means a change in race start times at Vichy, which hosts a week-long festival starting Monday. Tuesday’s meeting has been moved from afternoon to evening and will begin at 8:15 a.m. On Wednesday night, the course hosts the Grand Prix de Vichy G3, featuring the iconic line of the winner of the Saudi Cup (Quality Sugar) and will depart at 9:45 p.m. local time.
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This story was posted in Europe, Europe’s Top News and tagged BHA, British Equestrian Authority, Severe weather warning, heat wave, abandoned race.
