Eagle Farm ‘sight screen' coming down, vital set of trials scheduled on Tuesday
Trackside hoardings covered in mesh, meant to stop horses shying at a building on the point of the turn, were established last year as a method of covering up the construction of the building at which jockeys had claimed horses were shying.
Jockeys dramatically withdrew their services from riding at Eagle Farm for a period after a Robbie Dolan fall last July.
But the sight screen and other mitigation methods – including cantering horses past the 600m mark prior to every race to 'sight' the building – have worked with no similar racing incidents in the time since.
Developers were keen to remove the sight screen many months ago but there was consensus it should remain until after the Queensland winter carnival.
But now the sight screen has come down – at least in part.
The construction works involving the building which had apparently had caused the issue have now been finished.
There are parts of the sight screen which remain, covering up other construction areas.
However Tuesday's trials are an important plank for racing returning to normal at the state's top racetrack.
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'The intention is to have predominantly horses who aren't trained at Eagle Farm involved in the trials,' acting chief steward Geoff Goold said.
'We will have a number of stewards placed around the track to watch and then we will have feedback from the riding group after they come back in from each trial.
'Representatives of the Queensland Jockeys' Association will also be there.'
A condition of nomination for the eight 1000m trials will be that trainers agree that it will be mandatory for horses (pre-trial) to be cantered to the start and turned around to get a sight of the building area.
There is a nine-race metropolitan card scheduled to be raced at Eagle Farm on the Saturday after the trials, Saturday July 19.
Glen Prentice, the general manager of the Queensland Jockeys' Association, said: 'After some consultation with the Queensland Racing Integrity Commission, Racing Queensland and the Brisbane Racing Club, we look forward to trialling on Tuesday with the hoarding removed now that the building is in its finalised form.
'After the trials we will have an in-depth discussion with all parties to work out a way forward where hopefully everything can return to normal.
'Whether that be that the pre-race sightings remain before a race, or we return to procedures prior to the changes.'
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