Coronavirus: Doncaster Racecourse's Lincoln axed as all horse racing in Britain cancelled

Yesterday, it was announced that meetings would take place behind closed doors as the globe battles COVID-19.

But now the decision has been taken to cancel fixtures – meaning Doncaster's famous Lincoln meeting on March 28 will be cancelled.

Just 24 hours after the British Horseracing Authoirty announced racing would continue behind closed doors, the governing body have decided to suspend the sport until the end of April.

In a statement, the BHA said: "The BHA has confirmed that all horseracing in Britain will be suspended with effect from tomorrow.

"Last night, The Jockey Club announced that The Randox Health Grand National has been cancelled due to coronavirus.

"Two race meetings are scheduled to take place behind closed doors at Wetherby and Taunton today, but as of tomorrow race meetings will cease up to the end of April. The decision will be kept under constant review.

"The formal decision was taken by Board of the British Horseracing Authority this morning based on the statements made by the government yesterday and after consultation with senior industry leaders.

"Medical Advisers to the RCA and the BHA, who have been advising an industry group on the response to the crisis, have also been consulted.

"The BHA took the decision to protect essential emergency services and the health and welfare of staff working in the racing industry.

"Racecourses and racing have obligations to ensure the safety of participants and provide medical cover which clearly cannot be fulfilled in these circumstances. This follows the new advice issued by government yesterday to combat the spread of the virus."

Nick Rust, the chief executive of the BHA, added: “This is a national emergency the like of which most of us have never seen before. We’re a sport that is proud of its connection to rural communities and to the local businesses that support our industry.

"But our first duty is to the health of the public, our customers and to racing industry participants and staff so we have decided to suspend racing following the government’s latest advice.”