Racing is set to resume under strict protocols and behind closed doors in Ireland on 8 June. The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine said last week that racing, as a spectator-free sport, would fall into the third phase of the Government's plan to ease lockdown restrictions, meaning a 29 June restart looked likely.
However, Horse Racing Ireland had been consulting with the Government on the possibility of an earlier return, with chief executive Brian Kavanagh underlining the fact racing was staged without spectators before it shut down in March.
Those consultations appear to have paid dividends with Peter Burke, Fine Gael TD for the Longford-Westmeath constituency in the Dáil, announcing the resumption of the sport would now