French racecourses to allow crowds of up to 5,000 for all meetings from July 11

The French government has announced that all sports stadia, including racecourses, will be reopened to the paying public from July 11, with a limit of 5,000 people in the initial stages.

The news came as part of a raft of announcements surrounding the easing of lockdown restrictions, following a late-night session of the Defence and National Security Council (CSDN), France's equivalent of the Cobra committee.

In a separate development, France Galop confirmed meetings scheduled for Auteuil, Longchamp and Saint-Cloud next week will take place at their intended venues, meaning racing will return to the capital for the first time since May 19.

The Paris tracks reopened for racing behind closed doors in line with the rest of the country on May 11, but were forced to suspend operations just nine days later following an edict from the prime minister's office.

Longchamp will host its first meeting since May on Thursday, with the public due to be readmitted after July 11Credit: Edward Whitaker

With government science and health officials having reduced the level of threat posed by coronavirus in the greater Paris region to green last weekend, the move to confirm the fixtures was widely expected but is welcome nonetheless, with the Group 1 Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud now set to take place at its rightful home on Sunday, June 28.

The France Galop communique on Friday had offered the possibility the government might look at putting a partial end to the closed doors regime as early as this week and, while the CSDN's decision puts that on hold until July 11 - the day that France's state of emergency is due to end - the welcome sight of punters and racegoers back on major European racetracks is now tantalisingly close.

The Group 1 Prix Jean Prat on July 12 will be the first major French race to take place in front of any sort of crowd since the sport was halted due to the deadly outbreak of Covid-19 back in March.

The 5,000-person limit will mean for the biggest days it will not be quite business as usual, though the government made clear that even this limit might not last too much longer.

Saint-Cloud: Ger O'Leary has his first runner in France at the track on FridayCredit: Racing Post/Scott Burton

Following the conclusion of the CSDN meeting, a statement from the prime minister's office said: "The 5,000-person limit for major events, stadia and concert venues will stay in force until September 1. There will be a further study of the national situation with regard to the virus in mid-July, when a decision will be made as to whether a further easing [of measures] will be possible for the second half of August."

France Galop will announce in the coming days how it will handle the partial reopening of its racecourses to the public. The 5,000-person limit is unlikely to pose an issue on regular days, and comes a week too late for the Prix du Jockey Club/Prix de Diane Longines double header at Chantilly on July 5.

But with the popular summer meeting at Deauville around the corner, it remains to be seen whether advanced ticketing might be introduced.

What can be said with some certainty is that, barring a second wave of the virus leading to a reversal in government policy, the centenary Qatar Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe will be staged in front of a paying public at Longchamp on October 4.

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