Safety paramount says Laytown as De Bromhead tragedy puts focus on beach racing

Officials at Laytown, the only track in Ireland that stages action on the beach under the rules of racing, on Monday emphasised there are no additional risks to racing in such environs.

The County Meath venue stages its annual meeting on Thursday, the day after the funeral mass of 13-year-old Jack de Bromhead, the son of top jumps trainer Henry who died in a fall during a race at Glenbeigh’s horse and pony meeting on Rossbeigh Strand in County Kerry.

The rest of this year’s horse and pony racing season in Ireland has been suspended as a mark of respect for the De Bromhead family.

Saturday's accident could prompt a renewed focus on the safety of beach racing and, while acknowledging the sport's heartbreaking loss and stating plans to honour De Bromhead at Thursday's meeting, Laytown's general manager Kevin Coleman highlighted the measures taken to ensure the safety of all participants.

"The safety of all riders and horses is paramount to Laytown and we will continue to strive for that," he said.

Laytown returns on ThursdayCredit: Patrick McCann

The future of Laytown was in some doubt after its 1994 meeting resulted in three horses suffering fatal falls and a number of jockeys being injured, while the meeting was abandoned in 2002 when heavy rain made the sand unsafe to race on.

Considerable changes have been made to enhance safety over the years and only horses aged four and older are permitted to race, blinkers cannot be worn and apprentices who claim more than 5lb cannot ride.

The distances of the races were also changed, with no more racing permitted around a bend and only races up to seven furlongs can now be staged.

"The conditions were radically amended after 1994," added Coleman.

"There was no more racing around the hairpin bend. The bay is a natural curve but it's practically a straight course now.

"Thankfully we've never really had any further challenges since then. Certain areas of the shore are dammed up before racing and we employ water tankers to take any excess water out throughout the day when racing is going on after the 2002 incident.

"The running line has also been changed in order to avoid those streams again."

Reacting to De Bromhead's death, pony racing officials made the announcement via Twitter on Monday morning that all remaining fixtures for the season had been cancelled.

PonyRacing.ie tweeted: "Horse and pony racing is suspended for the rest of the season out of respect to Jack de Bromhead. Our priority now is to support everyone affected by this tragedy. Rest in peace Jack. Forever in our thoughts."

Jack de Bromhead: his death has rocked the sportCredit: Healy Racing

Brian Kavanagh, who this weekend will oversee his first Longines Irish Champions Weekend (ICW) as chief executive of the Curragh, added his condolences and said: "It'll cast a cloud over the weekend and the whole industry for a long time I think. Everyone is just in shock. It just puts everything in perspective. It's tragic really.

"The De Bromhead family are highly respected in racing and I think everyone is feeling their pain. He was such a lovely chap who even at such a young age impacted so many people. It's horrible really, and very hard to get your head around it."

Of the decision to abandon the remainder of the horse and pony racing season, he added: "I don’t think anyone in pony racing would have much of a stomach for racing this year after what happened on Saturday. It's such a close-knit community."

Brian Kavanagh: chief executive of the CurraghCredit: Patrick McCann (racingpost.com/photos)

De Bromhead was remembered with moments of silence and armbands at fixtures on both sides of the Irish Sea on Monday. Plans are still being finalised for upcoming meetings, but Kavanagh said ICW would pay tribute to him.

"We'll take our time and discuss exactly what we'll do here to mark his passing but we will certainly do something appropriate to honour him here when the time comes," he added.

De Bromhead's funeral mass will take place on Wednesday and he will repose at the family home in Knockeen between 3pm and 7pm on Tuesday. His requiem mass, which will be streamed online here, will take place on Wednesday at 12pm in the Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Butlerstown, followed by private cremation.

Vadeni, Luxembourg, Homeless Songs, Kyprios, Highfield Princess and Princess Zoe are just some of the star attractions expected to line up at Leopardstown and the Curragh this weekend with six Group 1s and over €3.9 million in prize money on offer in total.

Crowd figures have dropped at the Curragh’s major meetings this year, but Kavanagh is hopeful they can attract a good attendance on Sunday, with the sideshows including a parade of retired equine champions such as Tiger Roll, Douvan and Hurricane Fly.

He added: “We are really looking forward to Sunday. The racing is looking very strong and it looks like a very good card. We’ve plenty of UK interest which is great and it should be a great weekend with a good crowd expected.”