Punchestown meeting called off, Dundalk moved to Sunday
Inspections, one after another are being carried out across Britain and Ireland, as many fixtures and meetings that were scheduled to take place this week have been abandoned, meanwhile the ones which have not so far been cancelled are in serious doubt due
to the harsh weather conditions in the country.
Punchestown’s Sunday racing card was to feature the prestigious Grade I John Durkan Chase. This event has been postponed until next Thursday, as according to the weather forecasters some slight improvement in the frost in expected next week. The correspondents
of the Met Office have also revealed that these improvements in the freezing weather conditions will last long. On the other hand, the Friday night’s card that was scheduled to take place at Dundalk has been moved to Sunday afternoon, apparently due to some
security issues.
Discussing the prospects of the Punchestown meeting, the manager Richie Galway was doubtful on Wednesday. The postponement of the event was confirmed by the officials of the racecourse on Thursday morning.
The press officer of the Irish Turf Club, Cliff Noone, was reported as saying, “Punchestown is off on Sunday. The course is covered in two feet of snow. The plan is to run the card next Thursday.”
Punchestown will be a blank venue for the racing events until Sunday. Meanwhile, this gap is expected for be filled by the Sunday meeting at Dundalk, since the jockeys and other horsemen had issues over travelling to the venue on Friday, as per the initial
schedule. The security concerns have rooted due to the snow and ice on the roads, which will cause hindrance in travelling.
Talking to the correspondents about the Dundalk meeting, Noone said, “Dundalk has postponed tomorrow night’s meeting and it will now be on Sunday afternoon. It has been moved because of safety concerns over travel.”
Punchestown has given a new date for fresh entries. The date has been announced to close at noon on Monday, next week. The time of the race has not been changed yet. The meeting will kick off at 12.35 p.m. on Thursday. Supplementary entries have been announced
to be made by the same time and date.
As for the Dundalk meeting, the first race on Sunday will kick off at 12.35 p.m., while the declarations for the new and supplementary entries will close on Friday morning (10 a.m.).
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