Racegoers set to miss out at Chepstow on Saturday as officials seek clarity

Spectators are unlikely to be at Chepstow for the track’s fixture on Saturday, although course officials are hoping for greater clarity on the situation for the weeks ahead after a key meeting with the Welsh government on Monday.

Up to 2,000 spectators will be able to attend racecourses in England from Wednesday, but tracks in Wales and Scotland are awaiting guidance from the devolved governments in Cardiff and Edinburgh to determine if and when they can do the same.

Chepstow officials will be alongside representatives of the Welsh Rugby Union, Cardiff City and Swansea FC and Glamorgan County Cricket Club at the meeting, with a crowd for the Coral Welsh Grand National meeting on December 27 the focus for the course.

Phil Bell, executive director at Chepstow and Ffos Las, said: “We’re meeting with a representative from the Welsh government on Monday to discuss the situation, but I don’t envisage there being a decision in time to allow us to have any spectators on Saturday.

“The Welsh Grand National is our biggest meeting of the year and I had a meeting on Friday with our local MP David Davies, who has written to the government in support of that. We’re offering a united front for sport in Wales and working together to try and push our case.”

No paying spectators have been able to go racing since March 16, barring two pilot events in September, and general admission tickets for Saturday’s Betfair Tingle Creek meeting sold out in 17 minutes after going on sale.

Lingfield is one of the courses preparing for spectators on the first day they are permitted next week, with tickets reportedly selling steadily for the Wednesday fixture.

Dr Jerry Hill: urges caution from racegoersCredit: Racingfotos.com

Members of the public who are preparing to go to the races have been urged to think about their own health and how they plan to travel by the BHA’s chief medical adviser Dr Jerry Hill.

Speaking on Racing TV’s Luck On Sunday, Hill said he had been surprised by the timescale of crowds being given the go-ahead to return and added that widespread vaccination would be the main route to a significant increase in crowd sizes.

He said. “Across the various groups I’ve sat on we’ve been working steadily towards producing protocols and packages so that we could come back. We were prepared but didn’t expect it on this timescale.

“Delivering a full crowd even in the wide open spaces of racecourses is going to be challenging with social distancing. We need significant numbers of the population vaccinated so they are safer. There’s a way to go yet.”

Read more . . .

No hugs, no high-fives... but can I get a beer? New rules on racecourses

Where can you go racing? Full December fixture list with every racecourse's tier

Ludlow one of four tracks welcoming back racegoers next Wednesday

'Nobody gives a damn about us' - what is the future for on-course bookmakers?

For all our exclusive free bet offers and must-have daily promotions click the free bets button or go to racingpost.com/freebets