Sam Waley Cohen: amateur lockout could do real long-term damage to the sport

Amateur participation is the bedrock of jump racing, so the decision to prevent amateurs taking part in contests under rules from Saturday – including hunter chases – is not only devastating to all those people but has the potential to do real, long-term damage to the sport as a whole.

We need to think calmly about both the short-term and long-term effects of this decision, and I really hope that amateurs are reinstated at the earliest opportunity. It would fundamentally change the nature of amateur racing and point-to-pointing if it became the norm for professional jockeys to ride in hunter chases.

People need to understand that we have come a long way from the amateur sport many might remember.