Local knowledge hailed as Ayr Scottish Grand National protesters are foiled

Police were aware of a protest planned for Saturday's Coral Scottish Grand National the evening before, then tapped into the local knowledge of racecourse staff at Ayr to devise a plan to foil any disruption.

Police Scotland were praised for the "prompt and professional" response that ensured animal rights activists failed to disrupt Saturday's big race, as 25 arrests were made after individuals broke on to the track on Saturday.

Racecourse spokesman Jim Delahunt said: "Police detected some communications late on Friday that signalled something might be afoot and by Saturday morning, it was clear that some kind of protest was planned. 

"Our own security staff managed to impart their local knowledge regarding possible entry points to the racecourse and the publicly accessible Tesco car park halfway up the six-furlong Ayr Gold Cup track was identified as a realistic target.

"That did indeed prove to be the case but police and security teams were quickly on the scene and, as Police Scotland have confirmed, a number of arrests were made on the racecourse itself after protesters had tried to cross the Flat track and the hurdles course to reach the chase fences on the inside.

"A second attempt was made to infiltrate the track from the Craigie campus end of the racecourse where bus and coach traffic accesses the track, but there was already a heavy police presence there and this was quickly quelled. 

"The slight delay to the race was little more than the starter getting the big field organised for a fair getaway as the jockeys had entered the paddock on time and also left for the start as instructed by clerk of the course Graeme Anderson. 

"The sections of the 17,000 sellout crowd, which did actually become aware that there were a few protesters on track, booed and there was no disruption to the running of the race whatsoever. No public announcements were made by myself or the police and racing continued as normal."

25 people were arrested in connection with the Ayr protestsCredit: John Grossick

Local police said they had worked closely with Ayr to avoid any incidents, with protests at sporting events appearing regularly in the wider media since Aintree. On Monday, the Snooker World Championship was halted after a protester from climate change group Just Stop Oil jumped on the table and doused it with an orange powder and Animal Rising have stated intentions to cause disruption this summer.

Police Scotland assistant chief constable Tim Mairs said: "Around 3.20pm on Saturday, April 22, just before the main Scottish Grand National event at Ayr racecourse, a large group of protesters climbed under and over fences and made their way towards the track. A prompt and professional response by stewards and Police Scotland officers prevented this group from causing any disruption. As a result, the race was completed successfully and without further issue.

"Following this, there was a further attempt to disrupt a later race involving a smaller group of protesters. Both incidents resulted in people being safely removed and no injuries have been reported.

"Overall, there have been 25 arrests so far across the day and inquires are continuing. I'd like to commend the work of the officers and stewards who responded swiftly to intervene and prevent further escalation.

"We worked closely with the event organisers and other partners ahead of the Scottish Grand National to ensure a proportionate plan was in place to keep people safe and facilitate peaceful protest."

Two horses died at the meeting on Saturday. Oscar Elite suffered a fatal injury in the 3m novice handicap chase earlier in the day, while 2021 Scottish National winner Mighty Thunder had a suspected heart attack after running loose back to the stables.

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