Monday’s 10-race card, conducted under strict protocols, is an experiment with significance for other major sports, too
Shortly after 1.05pm on Monday, one of a dozen horses will cross the winning line at Newcastle racecourse and racing will become the first major professional sport in Britain to log a result in its record books since the middle of March. A few hours later, there will be handshake-free conclusions to the first matches in snooker’s Championship League tournament in Milton Keynes. Sport, of a kind, is finally returning and until the Premier League resumes on 17 June racing will have the spotlight largely to itself.
As well as an opportunity to attract new fans, Monday’s 10-race card in the north-east will come as an immense relief for the tens of thousands whose livelihoods depend on racing, above all the freelancers – jockeys included – who have not earned a penny from their trade for nearly three months. On-course bookmakers, though, will not be present just yet.
Written by Greg Wood
This news first appeared on https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2020/may/31/racing-newcastle-leads-way-professional-sport-returns under the title “
“. Bolchha Nepal is not responsible or affiliated towards the opinion expressed in this news article.
