York crowds surge back to pre-pandemic levels at trouble-free Ebor festival

York’s flagship Ebor meeting attracted crowds as big as before the pandemic, crowned by a record attendance for the Friday, in a huge vote of confidence in racing after a difficult 18 months.

In a further fillip the Welcome To Yorkshire-backed festival was marked by an absence of the trouble that has dogged the sport this summer, with no arrests over the four days.

Attendances overall matched the 2019 figure of more than 83,000, the last time the meeting was staged in front of spectators.