Chepstow Racecourse has confirmed the 2020 Coral Welsh Grand National meeting will now take place on Saturday 9 January 2021. This follows the abandonment of today’s fixture due to waterlogging.
After more than 220mm of rain in December, including 27mm during Storm Bella overnight, one section of the track in the back straight is impassable and unfit for racing.
The re-scheduled fixture will remain a seven-race card, identical to that due to be staged today. New entries for all races will be required, with races closing at 12 noon on Monday 4 January, with the exception of the Coral Welsh Grand National where entries will revert to the horses entered at the Weights Published stage. Declarations for all races will be at the 48-hour stage as normal.
Race conditions, race times and other fixture information will be available via the BHA Racing Admin site www2.racingadmin.co.uk on December 29th.
The Coral Welsh Grand National and the Coral Finale Hurdle will be shown live on ITV4 as part their coverage on January 9 which also features races from Kempton Park and Wincanton.
Phil Bell, Executive Director of Chepstow Racecourse said: “It is extremely disheartening that after such a significant volume of rain in December, it proved too much for one section of the course to cope with. The rest of the track was raceable. The timing of Storm Bella couldn’t have been worse for us.
“However, we are looking forward to the re-scheduled fixture on Saturday 9 January. We’d like to thank the British Horseracing Authority, Horserace Betting Levy Board, ITV and our sponsors Coral for working together on the revised date.”
Simon Clare, Ladbrokes Coral PR Director said: "“Whilst deeply frustrating that Storm Bella has scuppered our plans today, we have immediately focused on what we can control which is the rescheduling of this important race meeting.
“The Chepstow team have a well-honed contingency plan in place, as this will be the fifth time since 2010 that we have rescheduled the race in January. The Coral Welsh Grand National is one of the biggest betting races of the jump season, and has huge national significance for Wales as its most prestigious horse race, so it is important that we get the meeting on for everyone concerned.”
