Day 1 of The Championships to proceed despite Heavy 10 track
Royal Randwick has been drenched with a remarkable 230mm of rainfall within the last 24 hours, yet despite the deluge, Day 1 of The Championships will proceed.
Stewards confirmed early Saturday morning that the meeting would proceed, undeterred by the challenging weather conditions.
At 7:45 am, stewards announced, “The meeting will proceed on a Heavy 10. The section near the 1000m is consistent with the rest of the track and is deemed suitable for racing.”
Several notable scratchings have been recorded, notably in the Doncaster Mile (1600m), where Zougotcha, Golden Mile, Semana, and Southport Tycoon have withdrawn.
Golden Slipper winner Lady Of Camelot won’t be participating in the ATC Sires Produce Stakes (1400m), while Zardozi won’t be contesting the Australian Derby (2400m). Moreover, Private Eye and Cylinder have been scratched from the TJ Smith Stakes (1200m).
Despite the downpour, track manager Michael Wood reassured, stating that there’s no “squelching” on the track, hinting at a potential track upgrade as conditions may improve throughout the day.
At 6:45am on Saturday, stewards reported that “an inspection of the track has found it suitable for racing, except for a section near the 1000m where water overflow from a catchment is present.”
Stewards and officials are closely monitoring this section, with a decision expected within the next 30 minutes.
Sydney experienced a torrent of rain on Saturday morning, with trainers Peter Moody and Michael Freedman sharing videos on social media to illustrate the intensity of the precipitation.
By 6:15am on Saturday, a staggering 231mm of rain had inundated Randwick. However, the weather radar indicates that the worst of the rain has passed, with the storm system moving away from Sydney.