Expected travel ban could scupper Gordon Elliott's Grade 1 Chepstow hopes

Gordon Elliott should find out on Wednesday whether he can have runners in Saturday's Grade 1 Coral Finale Juvenile Hurdle at Chepstow, with the Irish government expected to extend its travel ban to Britain due to rising coronavirus rates.

The travel ban that was initiated on December 20 prevents any non-essential movement from Britain to Ireland and is seemingly set to be extended until at least Friday night.

Elliott has the unbeaten pair Quilixios and Duffle Coat entered for the Grade 1 contest on Welsh Grand National day. Horse Racing Ireland chief executive Brian Kavanagh on Tuesday did not want to pre-empt the outcome of the impending government deliberations.

However, with the escalating Covid-19 crisis beginning to see concerns raised over the participation of Irish horses at the Cheltenham Festival in March, he insisted that all options will be explored in an effort to resume international competition.

Chepstow Saturday card

Ahead of a cabinet meeting on Wednesday, on Tuesday senior ministers are due to convene with the three coalition leaders as part of a cabinet sub-committee to discuss implementing enhanced restrictions, and racing's eyes will be trained on the current suspension of non-essential movement between the two countries.

"I heard the Taoiseach indicating the travel ban may be extended, but we'll see what comes out of the government announcement on Wednesday and take stock," Kavanagh said of Elliott's Chepstow entries.

"Long term, we obviously need to be moving horses between Ireland and England, but, equally, you have to be cognisant of the bigger picture as well. So let's see what the government advice is and see where we can go then."

Quilixios: one of two entered in the Finale Juvenile Hurdle for Gordon ElliottCredit: Patrick McCann (racingpost.com/photos)

From a logistics point of view, with Elliott and Willie Mullins alone likely to send around 100 horses between them to Cheltenham in March, staffing is going to be an area on which there will be considerable pressure.

Kavanagh did not want to be drawn specifically on Cheltenham, but said he would be encouraged by the precedents set during the summer.

"It would be premature to say anything about Cheltenham - that is a long way away," he said. "The governments, both in the UK and here, are responding to the situation as they find it on a day-to-day basis. They issued a no-travel instruction and we have gone along with that. Obviously, the longer it goes on, the more impact it has, but we have to be mindful of the bigger crisis."

Brian Kavanagh: 'we have to be mindful of the bigger crisis'Credit: Patrick McCann (racingpost.com/photos)

"During the summer we had horses travelling over from the UK being looked after by Irish staff, and I know Aidan O'Brien based a team of staff in the UK to look after his horses. So if this goes on much longer, we can look at options around that.

"Then there is the elite sporting exemption, but really that is for a different purpose. It's more for people moving in and out on a one-off basis, whereas for a meeting like Cheltenham, which is still ten weeks away, you'd be talking about the movement of a large number of horses. But we found ways during the Flat season with workarounds and I'd be hopeful we'll be able to do the same again."

Level 5 restrictions are already in place in Ireland, but schools are now expected to remain closed for the remainder of the month and building sites are also on the agenda.

At this stage, there is tentative optimism that elite and professional sport, which will continue in Britain despite the enhanced lockdowns there, will not be stopped.

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"We'll wait and see what comes out of the government's decision," Kavanagh said when asked if he was confident Irish racing would continue.

"We wouldn't be privy to anything like that so we'll see what comes through. I suppose the fact that racing has continued in England and Scotland is a positive, and you look at your track record over the last seven months as well. It's different as well, as things like schools and building sites are nationwide and going on on a large scale, whereas a race meeting is one event, once a day, so it's a different issue."

Since the initial hard lockdowns were lifted in early June, sport has provided a welcome distraction when more stringent restrictions were subsequently imposed.

Asked if that benefit is now accepted at government level, Kavanagh said: "I think that was recognised when you saw the determination to run off the All Ireland series in the last quarter of last year, and it has been mentioned in the context of racing continuing.

"There is a need for distraction or a need for entertainment. Again, I'm not privy to government's thinking on it, but there is no doubt, it does provide an area of interest for people and the country. People got great enjoyment out of the All Ireland series and, likewise for racing, it is keeping a lot of people going."

All you need to know about the coronavirus lockdowns restrictions where you live

Monday's national lockdown in Britain was another blow to any hopes of crowds at Cheltenham in March, with course officials believing a small attendance would be a realistic best-case scenario.

However, Cheltenham has not yet made a decision to host the Festival behind closed doors at this stage.

Ian Renton, regional managing director for the Jockey Club, said: "I know we all wanted better news to start 2021 than a national lockdown, but clearly the situation in the country remains a serious one.

"At Cheltenham the team remain focused on preparing for one of the highlights of the sporting calendar and the pinnacle of our sport. Although we're realistic that it looks like the festival will, at best, only be attended by small numbers of people, hopefully it will be enjoyed by many millions watching at home on television.”

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