Sport aims to break new ground with meeting open to all

One of point-to-pointing's grandest courses will break new ground in several ways at a meeting two weeks tomorrow.

Barbury Racecourse, near Swindon in Wiltshire, is the venue for the inaugural Barbury International meeting, at which horses based with licensed trainers, and runners and riders from Ireland, can take part, with a point-to-point bumper also on the card.

The card sits outside of the current regulations, and the sport's stakeholders stress they are not exploring increased licensed trainer participation, but the meeting provides a platform for the British and Irish to compete, potentially bolstering the credibility of British maiden point-to-point form.