Spyglass Hill - leading Thyestes fancy and changed hands at the Goffs Landrover NH Sale in 2016© Photo Healy Racing
The iconic Goffs Thyestes Chase takes place at Gowran Park today and Goffs Chief Executive Henry Beeby said great credit is to due to everyone in the Irish racing industry for managing to create a safe environment to allow racing to continue during these difficult times.
Following 9mm of rain in the last 24 hours, the going at the County Kilkenny venue remains heavy. There's a dry morning at the picturesque south-eastern course with light showers forecast this afternoon.
"In the last ten months, since March last year in Covid times, Irish racing has been even more important to the fabric of Irish society because it was very quickly one of the sports that was able to come back behind closed doors, meeting the restrictions, being compliant, being responsible, because as a non contact sport outside in huge areas it was able to deliver a safe and compliant environment," said Beeby.
"I think we owe an enormous death of gratitude to both the Government of the day and HRI for working together to bring it back, and then to all the participants for embracing it without complaint and just saying - 'this isn't what we'd like to do but it's what we've got to do - and the fact that bar a few weeks Irish racing has managed to continue. I think it's a feather in the cap for everybody involved."
