Southwell horse racing confirmed the abandonment of two races due to the extreme heat the UK has been experiencing this week due to welfare concerns.
Despite temperatures exceeding 30º the seven-race meeting went ahead, starting at 11:25am. The race day was later abandoned with only two races remaining.
The British Horse Racing Authority (BHRA) released a statement:
Racing is abandoned due to extreme temperatures”
A spokesperson for the BHRA continued the decision was made due to the:
Combination of the distance of the final two races and the continual rise of temperatures on course [which] meant there was agreement that it was not safe for racing to continue”.
The race meeting had started two hours earlier than planned in the bid to beat the hottest temperatures of the day. The day was finally abandoned after five races had been run without incident, the remaining two which were scheduled for 2pm and 2.30pm were canceled.
