Horseracing: Cheltenham Festival comes under fresh doubt
The Cheltenham Festival has come under fresh doubt after it was confirmed a suspected case of foot-and-mouth disease has emerged three miles from Lambourn, England.
Lambourn, a village in Berkshire, is 50 miles from Cheltenham but is the main National Hunt training centre in the country.
With Irish horses already ruled out of the Festival and French runners a big doubt, the loss of the mainstay of domestic runners could see next week's meeting called off.
Simon Claisse, clerk of the course at Cheltenham, conceded: "We've said from the outset that if another major training centre was hit by the disease, then that would be a major blow to the chances of the meeting going ahead."
The news that Lambourn was under investigation of a case of the disease was confirmed by Peter Walwyn, chairman of the Lambourn Trainers' Association.
"The Ministry of Agriculture has confirmed that there is a suspected case in the Lambourn area," said Walwyn.
"It has not been confirmed but it is obviously a big worry."
The news prompted Ben Gill, president of the National Farmers Union, to urge tomorrow's resumption of racing to be halted.
Gill stated "We do not know where this virus is in Britain.
"Already it would be totally unwise for farmers to go to the meeting. All we've asked for is another seven-day stand-off. We need to know whether the disease is under control.
"This suspected case illustrates the fear that we have.
"We do not know where the next case is and it could be next to a stable that sends a horse to a race-meeting."
