4yr-olds in 2009/2010 season
PARTICIPATION OF 4 YEAR OLDS IN POINT-TO-POINTS – AS FROM THE 2009 / 10 SEASON
Following the 2005 season it was decided to allow four-year-olds to resume running in Point-to-Points, something that had not been permitted since 1958.
Originally this decision permitted four-year-olds to run in any 2½ mile maiden but with the stipulation that should they win they could not progress until the following season. Due to its success it was then agreed that for the 2007 / 2008 Season, four-year-olds should be allowed to go on and run over a greater distance following a win in a 2½ mile maiden in the same season.
Due to the steady increase in participation over the last three seasons (number of registered four-year-olds to date is 79 compared to 35 in 06 / 07); the PPA Board at its meeting on 6th May decided to create further opportunities for horses of this age from the start of the 2009 / 2010 Season.
These changes will facilitate greater opportunities for young horses across the country to prove their worth and possibly progress to the professional game, and to strengthen the already strong links with National Hunt racing.
* For the 2009 / 2010 Point-to-Point season, all 2½ mile Maidens must be open to 4, 5, 6 & 7 year olds.
* Any Maiden over 3 miles without an age restriction will be open to “4 years and over”.
* Furthermore, a change will be made to both Regulations 72 (races to be included in a Hunt meeting) and 73 (races to be included in a Service, Club, Association or Society meeting) stipulating that if more than one maiden race is scheduled at a fixture, one of them MUST be open to four year olds.
These changes were agreed following consultation with both the British Horseracing Authority’s Director of Equine Science & Welfare and the British Horseracing Authority’s Racing Department. The proposal will be raised formally at the BHA Board Meeting in June for its ratification.
Current weight structures will remain unchanged, and horse performance will continued to be monitored.
This Press Release has been sent out now so as to alert participants prior to the Horses in Training and Store sales that take place each May, many of which cater for the Point-to-Point community.
Other categories of horse eligibility are to remain unaltered for the 2009 / 2010 season, other than the cut-off dates being rolled forward twelve months, as has been the practice in previous years.
For further information please contact the Point-to-Point Authority Limited on 01285 841920 or info@p2pa.co.uk
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