the 2020 grand national should not be abandoned.

​I wholly understand that Aintree and the B.H.A. had little option but to call-off the 3-day Grand National meeting. In the current climate, the near-hysteria that is channelling every political and social determination that is journeying our country toward a financial tipping-point, it would have shown the sport in a very poor light to have carried on regardless. It would also have taken away the magic of the Grand National to have staged the race in front of empty stands. It would have seemed as if the sport was sticking two fingers up at the public, especially those worst affected by this nasty flu-bug.
Having said that, the B.H.A. is demonstrating no leadership qualities at all in taking the line of least resistance. Postponing the Grand National is understandable but to abandon the single most financially important race in the whole calendar? I ask you, is that protecting the interests of the sport? I predict the B.H.A. will move heaven and Earth to ensure the Derby and Royal Ascot are staged, so why not show some backbone and come up with a plan for staging the 2020 Grand National, all 3-days if possible, at some date in the remaining 8-months of the year.
Given that there would be too many clashes with the major flat meetings to think of staging the meeting during the summer, I thought, if contractual obligations and that sort of thing are make it agreeable, that Aintree’s Becher Chase meeting could be extended to 3-days, especially as they would be building the fences anyway. Yes, I know that would give us two Grand Nationals in one-season, though one would be this years and the second next year’s. Anyway, you can never get enough of a good thing.
It may be politically correct to adhere to government advice and to put public health before self-interest but it is the B.H.A.’s responsibility to ensure the sport is run on a secure financial footing and to forego the revenue and publicity that the Grand National affords the sport is poor management and displays lack of backbone and commitment.
Over the years I have followed and cherished this sport, I have seen the Jockey Club, when it ruled horse racing, do nothing to help save Aintree when it was imperilled back in the 1960’s. We lost a Cheltenham Festival to foot and mouth and a Grand National due to a wholly avoidable self-inflicted cock-up when the sport’s administration was shown-up as amateurish and incompetent. Now we are to allow a nasty flu pandemic take away our most cherished horse-race, the most famous race in the world, when there remains eight-months in which to stage the race.
Although Tiger Roll’s attempt to win three Grand Nationals is not reason enough to go against medical and government advice, it is a perfectly good reason to move heaven and Earth to get the race on at sometime in this calendar year. Also, trainers, jockeys and owners should be taken into consideration. If the go-ahead were given over the coming days and weeks to try to stage the Grand National in November, as I suggest, it will allow trainers to let-down their Grand National horses early so as to have them back in their stables early enough to be prepared for the delayed race.
This sport is going to take a huge financial hit over the coming months, more so if in stead of racing behind closed doors, which will impact greatly anyway, it is forced to stop altogether as in France and Germany. To recover or at least to steady the ship, the sport will need a boost, something to look forward to (we can only hope that by November the country has returned to normality) and not just financially, and the Grand National in November is, I propose, just the tonic we all will need.
I remind you, during the war, and it does feel very much like the government has put the country on a war-footing, horse racing was allowed to continue as it was considered the public needed a diversion, a bit of fun, from the constant bombing and lack of good news from the war-front. Though the ignorant few took easy-to-hit pot-shots at Cheltenham taking place last week, for those of us whose lives would have been blighted if it had not taken place were allowed a few hours away from the constant drip of flu-related restrictions and cancellations. We were lucky, though, with the timing. A week later and the sport would have suffered yet another financial wounding.
I urge everyone to get behind a campaign to persuade the B.H.A., Aintree and Randox Health, to move heaven and Earth to get the Grand National re-routed to November.