The Irish meeting at Laytown that takes place one a year on the beach will not go ahead this year with there being concerns over social distancing.
Due to the current crisis going on in the world the quirky race meeting in September will not be seen and even though that is a few months away the organisers have looked to get ahead of the problem and called the fixture off.
The unique meeting sees a racecourse set up on Laytown strand beach and when the tide goes out you are able to set up rials and it leaves a patch of the beach that is able to race on.
(Credit AtTheRaces) Joe Collins, Laytown Races chairman, said: “Laytown Races is in a unique position as we race under temporary facilities and our racetrack on the beach is a fantastic amenity, open to the public.
The final race of 2019 at Laytown goes to Confident Kid.
— Racing TV (@RacingTV) September 11, 2019
Rated just 46, this one is finally off the mark on a fine day at the beach for @adomcguinness1
Results ➡ https://t.co/glajGUNuih pic.twitter.com/sfFMbwbd4y
“As the health and safety of Laytown and Bettystown residents, sponsors, racegoers, jockeys, trainers, stable staff and racecourse staff is our number one priority, the committee had too many concerns about how we could implement social distancing during racing, especially on the beach and in the village.
“After consultation with all the key stakeholders including the Gardia, Horse Racing Ireland and the Irish Horseracing Regulatory Body, the committee reached the very difficult decision to cancel our 2020 race meeting, but we are already looking forward to welcoming everyone back to our 2021 race fixture.”
All punters and customers that had already bought tickets for the meeting are set to receive a full refund.