With the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic being managed by the Government of Trinidad and Tobago, the major stakeholder in the Horse racing fraternity, the Trinidad and Tobago Racing Authority(TTRA), the Betting Levy Board (BLB) and the Arima Race Club(ARC) at a meeting held on Monday last agreed upon a way forward for local horse racing.
The racing plant at Santa Rosa Park, Arima was closed for racing since March 14th.
The ARC has proposed June 19 (Labour Day) for the re-start of the Sport of Kings locally. A date from the two of the three leaders in the local horse racing scene agreed to be adequate.
However, the re-start can only commence with Government's permission which has not yet been given at the time of writing this article.
Here is the joint press release from the three arms of racing in Trinidad and Tobago.
The leaders representing the ARC, the BLB and the T&TRA met on the 1 June 2020 to design the restart of the industry with a race programme at Santa Rosa Park racecourse in Arima.
The release stated that the meeting agreed that the live races will not have any spectators during this upcoming time of transition to a new normal - we are hopeful that this resumption will occur on Friday 19th June 2020, subject to the approval from the Government and the local authorities charged with the handling of the pandemic.
All Government and Ministry of Health COVID-19 protocols will be followed.
The release continued that the number of personnel required on that race day will be extremely limited to the bare essential concerning congregating and the overall safety and welfare of the racehorses, grooms and jockeys.
We look forward to the resumption of the local horse racing industry as it means different things to different people, either a form of much-needed employment or as an entertainment product for the future attraction of tourists and nationals to Santa Rosa Park in Arima.
With the intended June 19 re-start of the ARC, the Racehorse Owners Association (ROA) President, Vishan Ali, has called on all stakeholders- The TTRA, BLB, ARC, RTA and jockeys to attend a meeting at the Grandstand at 9:30 am on Sunday, to discuss the cutting stakes and stakes monies outstanding.
