Thurles Racecourse's reopening is weather dependent It is positive to see Horse Racing Ireland (HRI) has reached an agreement with Thurles Racecourse for racing to continue at the venue for the remainder of the 2025/2026 Jumps season. The original announcement by the Moloney family at the beginning of August, that the track would close with immediate effect, came as a major surprise to most within the industry. For HRI to have managed to put an interim solution in place before the month's end shows what can be achieved when everyone in the industry is pulling in the same direction. Following an industry-wide call for Thurles to be saved, the sport's governing body reacted quickly and has been able to broker a deal to enable racing to continue, for an initial period of one season, with the operational obligations now being handled by HRI rather than the racecourse's owners. The Interim Agreement We are told "this agreement, made possible in conjunction with the Association of Irish Racecourses, the IHRB, and the support of the wider industry, will see Thurles Racecourse fulfil its 11 fixtures through to March 2026, resuming as scheduled on Thursday, October 9. "Keeping Thurles operational until March of next year affords all interested parties time to consider a longer-term plan for the racecourse." It does, however, seem quite surprising to me that the joint statement issued by HRI and Thurles Race Company makes no reference to any provisions relating to a watering system for the track. In the original statement issued by Riona Moloney on the first of August she said about the immediate closure that: "Ever increasing industry demands and the cost of doing business has also been a major factor." The 'ever increasing industry demands' appears to be a reference to the new Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board (IHRB) and HRI Racecourse Manual, which is a comprehensive framework document that all racecourses are required to adhere to. Watering System Requirements Under the heading 'Watering System' in the Racecourse Manual the following wording is used: The recommended amount of water is imperative for good turf management and participant safety/welfare Key Requirements: Capable of applying as much water as required by the IHRB Clerk of the Course Water distribution system (including pump and backup) which applies irrigation consistently and in a manner that minimises the impact of wind distribution A good consistent water supply (i.e. reservoir/bore hole) Separately, in March of this year the IHRB published the findings of their review of the incident that had led to the tragic death of jockey Michael O'Sullivan one month earlier at Thurles. The review included four industry recommendations, including this one relating to the specific need for a watering system at Thurles: Track Improvements: Review track configurations and conditions, including the prioritisation of a watering system at Thurles to ensure ground consistency. Article highlights: HRI has arranged for Thurles Racecourse to remain open for the 2025/2026 Jumps season despite previous closure announcement No watering system is mentioned in the new agreement, despite being a key IHRB requirement The IHRB specifically recommended a watering system at Thurles after jockey Michael O'Sullivan's tragic death Taking into consideration the priority that the IHRB has placed on the implementation of a watering system at Thurles, it is most surprising that the track will reopen with no such system in place. Eleven race meetings, which is around 77 races, are scheduled to take place at Thurles between now and March, all to be operated by HRI without a watering system. If the Moloney family had known at the beginning of August that they didn't need to spend approximately €300,000 on a watering system for the foreseeable future, they may not have decided to close the track in the first place. The safety and welfare of the participants, both human and equine, should always be the number one priority, but it appears that the short-term survival of a racecourse has taken precedence in this instance. Ryan Moore's Irish Rides Changing the subject, I was looking at Ryan Moore's intended mounts at the Curragh last Saturday (he didn't actually ride at the meeting due to injury) and it got me thinking about why he rarely rides for anyone in Ireland except Aidan O'Brien. You would expect that most owners and trainers would jump at the opportunity to use a world class jockey like Moore when he is over here, but for some reason that doesn't happen. On all of his visits to Ireland this season Ryan Moore has only had outside rides for Aidan's two sons Joseph and Donnacha and two British trainers. No other Irish trainer got a look in. Strange that he doesn't ride for anyone else, as he is often sitting in the weigh-room watching on while he waits for his next Ballydoyle ride, but I suspect that is entirely his choice. Jockey Availability Issues It turns out that Ryan Moore will be out of action for most of the remainder of the year with a leg fracture. Coincidently, Ballydoyle's other main rider, Wayne Lordan, is also suspended for the upcoming Irish Champions' Festival weekend. It will be fascinating to see who replaces these two riders in all the big races at Leopardstown and the Curragh and of course in the Doncaster St Leger which also takes place on the same weekend. I suppose Christophe Soumillon is likely to be drafted in from France, but in the circumstances there must be a small chance of an Oasis-style reunion for Aidan and Seamie somewhere across that weekend? Seamie Heffernan has ridden for virtually every flat trainer in Ireland over the last two seasons (111 different trainers last season and already 85 so far this season), but hasn't sat on a horse trained by Aidan O'Brien since he walked out of Ballydoyle two years ago.
