CHELTENHAM bosses are hard at work to ensure Irish horses can ship over for the Festival in March.
A combination of Brexit and coronavirus-related travel restrictions continue to cause a headache for racing chiefs on both sides of the Irish Sea.
Horses were unable to travel in either direction over Christmas, and Gordon Elliott's unbeaten pair Quilixios and Duffle Coat are unlikely to be able to take up their entries at Chepstow on Saturday.
The Irish government are expected to extend the ban on 'all non-essential' travel to Britain later today.
While Cheltenham is a little over two months away, concerns are growing over the potential non-participation of many Irish runners.
At the last two Festivals, horses trained in Ireland have accounted for 38 per cent of all runners, a total of 180 horses in 2020 and 187 in 2019.
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Post-Brexit travel issues for horses or Covid-related restrictions on the staff who look after them could lead to a significant drop in the numbers making the trip.
Cheltenham supremo Ian Renton is hopeful that some runners will attend – but he conceded that difficulties could remain for the next couple of months.
He said: “We’ll continue to talk to the Irish and French and the authorities over here to do everything we can to ensure that the passage for Irish and French horses is as easy as possible.
“People are precluded from travelling at the moment and I’m sure there will be significant issues even going into March.
"But I’m sure we will manage to get a number of the Irish participants coming over.”
But if the Irish government refuse to ease up on restrictions, Horse Racing Ireland (HRI) will be left with little choice but follow the rules.
HRI chief Brian Kavanagh said: “The concern from Government is very clear: these are exceptional times and a travel ban with the UK is a once-in-a-generation occurrence.
“Irish racing has followed Government advice at all times during Covid-19 and will continue to do so."
The market for several of the feature Cheltenham Festival races are headed by Irish-trained runners.
Al Boum Photo is the 7-2 favourite with Betway to win a third straight Gold Cup for Willie Mullins.
And the likes of Chacun Pour Soi, Appreciate It, Envoi Allen and Min are also short prices for the four-day meeting.
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