Disparity in Covid-19 regulations as applied to horse sport and horse racing makes no sense.

I am not alone in this opinion because ever since the Government introduced Level 5 restrictions there has been a number of calls for both these phases of equine activity to be treated equally. As Horse Sport Ireland (HSI) acting CEO Joe Reynolds said: “It is time for parity between horse sport and racing.”

Recently in the Dáil, Independent TD for Co Clare, Michael MacNamara, declared: “Horse Racing Ireland and Greyhound Racing Ireland are able to go about their work. But another group of elite athletes on elite beasts in Horse Sport Ireland are not able to go about their training and work.”

He went on to note that while in terms of finance, these three groups were not equal he could see no difference between them in terms of their interaction with other people and their threat in relation to the epidemic. He also noted that horse sport was an Olympic discipline unlike racing.

“While I have the greatest respect for people who train horses for racing and train greyhounds for competing I have never heard of a greyhound winning an Olympic medal for Ireland.” He concluded with the point: “There are Irish horse sport teams now training for the Olympics. Let them go about their work!”

Olympics

According to the latest statements from Japan, they have no intention of postponing the Tokyo Games for a second time. The same can also be said of next year’s Dublin Horse Show.

RDS show director Patrick Hanley had this to say when contacted by The Irish Horse: “It is full steam ahead for the 2021 show. We have contractual arrangements with the Nations Cup Series, the dates are in the diary for 18-22 August. We have the opportunity to react as matters evolve but right now we are up and running.”

With those two major events in mind – the Olympics and the Dublin Horse Show which touch upon just about every elite equestrian sector here, it is not right to leave owners, riders, trainers, and horses in limbo while horse racing and greyhound racing can work away.

I can see no real difference between a jockey on a racehorse galloping around Punchestown and a dressage rider preparing for competition in Tokyo alone in a sand arena, an event rider making his or her way around a cross county course or a show jumper having his or her two minutes around 12 fences in terms of a Covid-19 health threat to the community. It is time for a rethink about this narrow distinction between different phases of horse riding.