New Zealand racing comes to an immediate halt as Kiwi Easter vendors left stranded
Australian industry ploughs on for now under strict biosecurity measures
New Zealand vendors set to sell at next month’s Inglis Australian Easter Yearling Sale will be unable to get their horses to Sydney for the auction as the country’s government moved to shut down the nation in an attempt to slow the rate of Covid-19 infection.
The development also saw the immediate suspension of racing in the country for at least four weeks due to the strict protocols imposed yesterday by prime minister Jacinda Ardern.
It comes as Australia’s thoroughbred industry governing bodies gained a reprieve from new restrictions announced on Sunday night by prime minister Scott Morrison which saw mass closures of pubs, clubs, restaurants and indoor sporting venues yesterday.
Racing Victoria and Racing NSW were first to announce that meetings would continue under strict biosecurity measures, which were implemented earlier this month including the banning of the public in attendance.
New Zealand Bloodstock yesterday reacted to their government’s news by announcing that its international equine airfreight business would also be suspended indefinitely, a decision that impacts seven vendors who were set to offer horses at the Easter sale
Trelawney Stud’s Brent Taylor had two colts, by Lonhro (Octagonal) and Savabeel (Zabeel), set to be offered at the Easter auction but the farm principal confirmed yesterday that the horses were stranded in New Zealand.
“We were advised this morning that the airlines are not allowing grooms on the aircraft with the horses so, therefore, the air transport link is shut down as well, so our yearlings won’t be going to Easter even if the sale is on because they can’t get into Australia,” Taylor told ANZ Bloodstock News.
“Similarly, we had a filly (Two Illicit) who was supposed to be on the plane tomorrow to go and run in the Vinery on Saturday (in Sydney) and she can’t get there either. It’s just one of those things that’s out of our hands.”
Taylor was planning to be a vendor and buyer at the Easter sale but that has now been shelved.
“The thoroughbred industry is resilient, no question about it, but you’ve got product on the shelf ready to sell being yearlings for Easter,” he said.
“That moment of opportunity has disappeared for New Zealand vendors at that sale and we can only hope for our Australian friends that the sale is still able to go ahead in a few weeks’ time.
“But there’s certainly going to be a reduced demand, you would expect, without the ability to travel. From our perspective, we were very keen to sell there but also we saw the catalogue as a great opportunity to be able to go and buy capital stock. That now becomes difficult if we can’t be there and part of it.”
While lamenting the lost opportunities caused by the pandemic, Taylor was not against the drastic action taken yesterday by the New Zealand government.
“It’s only horses. People’s lives and the community is far more important than the opportunity to sell,” he said.
“We’re very fortunate that we have been watching countries from all around the world and being stuck down at the bottom of the southern hemisphere in the ocean, so we’ve had this buffer and we’ve foreseen how other countries have reacted in the face of this disease.”
Queensland yesterday became the latest state to close its borders, joining Tasmania, Western Australia, the Northern Territory, South Australia and the ACT in imposing a 14-day quarantine period on any non-essential visitors.
So far, the governments of NSW and Victoria have not taken the same action, meaning interstate vendors Mill Park (South Australia), Element Hill, KBL Thoroughbreds and Highgrove Stud (Queensland), Yulong, Woodside Park Stud, Rosemont Stud, Two Bays Farm and A List Stud (Victoria) would still be able to consign their horses at the Easter sale.
However, the staff returning to their home state after the sale would be compelled to undertake 14 days of self-isolation where a border ban was in place.
Inglis management again met yesterday about its Easter sale but the company did not make public any changes to those already announced last week regarding an invite-only buying bench and the complying with a 500-person limit for outdoor gatherings.
There were again suggestions yesterday that the company would bring forward its sale by a few days but that was not confirmed last night and as it stands the auction will proceed on April 7 and 8.
Milburn Creek’s John Muir, whose NSW Southern Highlands operation has 15 yearlings catalogued for the Easter sale, implored Inglis to go ahead with the April sale.
The successful businessman did not dismiss the magnitude of the coronavirus pandemic, but was optimistic that another “virus” would help ensure the viability of the Easter market.
“I find that horse buyers have got a virus. They love coming to a sale and buying stock. I picked up the virus myself many years ago and I love being in the horse business,” Muir told ANZ Bloodstock News yesterday.
“If I was captain of the Titanic I’d probably say, ‘don’t worry, folks, we’ve just taken on ice’.”
On a more serious level, Muir said potential buyers had been inspecting Milburn Creek’s Easter draft on the farm in the past week and that was expected to continue in the coming days.
“They’ve come down to see the stock in person because they may be bidding (on the internet) rather than being there in person,” he said.
“(The coronavirus) is a setback, but for the buyers there may never be a better opportunity in their lifetime to come and buy a yearling, maybe at a discounted price.”
Australian racing to continue on
Racing NSW chief executive Peter V’landys, who has also been juggling the crisis as chairman of the Australian Rugby League Commission, confirmed yesterday that racing in the state would continue with strict biosecurity measures in place.
His Racing Victoria counterpart Giles Thompson said his board met yesterday following the latest regulations imposed and that they resolved to press on with meetings.
“The decision to continue racing and training is not one that has been taken lightly, but we make it knowing that Victorian racing will continue to do everything to remain compliant with all the current directives, guidelines and advice established by the Victorian government on the advice of the chief health officer,” Thompson said.
“We won’t rest on our laurels though. We will continually review this decision in consultation with government and health authorities to ensure that we are acting in not only the best interests of all of the staff and stakeholders in our industry, but their families, friends and indeed the wider community.
“I can’t stress enough how important it is for all stakeholders within our industry to ensure they abide by both the government directives and our strict industry protocols and that they ensure that they maintain good hygiene, practice social distancing and self-isolate when required.”
Racing Queensland also confirmed it would proceed with race meetings, while South Australia, Western Australia, Tasmania, the Northern Territory and the ACT are also expected to continue.
Earlier, Victorian racing minister Martin Pakula confirmed that racing in his state, and Australia-wide, had permission to continue for the time being, but admitted that further government restrictions could see a shutdown of the industry if the Covid-19 pandemic worsens.
“Everyone in the industry is making the best arguments that we can make and acting in a unified way to make the case to health officials why (we should keep racing),” Pakula told RSN927 yesterday.
“Racing (Victoria) has been very proactive, it has taken social distancing measures, they put crowds out before they were required to do so. They’ve already announced the May races (at Warrnambool) … will be crowd free. They are separating jockeys. They are doing everything right.
“But ultimately health officials will make a decision based on what they think is needed to slow the spread of this disease. As an industry we are going to have to accept and respect that.”
The national cabinet is due to meet tonight to discuss further biosecurity measures which could again threaten to stop racing.