Owners barred from attending Melbourne Cup Carnival

Melbourne racing officials have expressed anger and disappointment at the decision not to allow owners to attend the Melbourne Cup Carnival, just days after spectators were also barred from next week’s Lexus Melbourne Cup.

Prior to Wednesday’s announcement by the state government in Victoria, optimism had been rising about a limited number of owners being able to participate in the fixture only for the hopes to be dashed by racing minister Martin Pakula.

“I have today advised the Victoria Racing Club that connections of horses competing at the Melbourne Cup Carnival will not be permitted to attend the course,” he said.

“The government has determined that next week is not a suitable time for gatherings of that nature. It is the right decision and has been made in the interests of all Victorians.”

Melbourne exited 112 days of strict Covid-19 restrictions on Wednesday having been at the forefront of the second wave of the virus in Australia, leading those at the Victoria Racing Club (VRC) to believe that permitting owners may be possible for Australia’s flagship contest.

The decision to ban owners was rebuked by VRC chair Amanda Elliott, who said: “The Victorian Government today has rejected our proposal to have owners on course during Cup week. To say we are extremely disappointed is an understatement.

“In light of this week’s easing of restrictions, including the reopening of retail and hospitality, we were really optimistic a controlled number of owners would have been able to attend Flemington to watch their horses compete in the most important week of racing.

“Owners are critical to our sport and industry. Their support has played a major part in sustaining racing during the pandemic. We are devastated that they cannot be at Flemington.”

Prince Of Arran, fourth in the Caulfield Cup last time, stepped up his preparation for Tuesday’s A$8 million (£4.38m/€4.85m) Lexus Melbourne Cup with a solo workout at Werribee on Wednesday.

Aled Beech, travelling head lad for trainer Charlie Fellowes, said: “If you look at his Caulfield Cup run it's arguably his best run out here. There was a lot of hot competition in that race and the way he responded in the last couple of furlongs was incredible.”

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