Quarantine rules out Czech Republic’s Melbourne Cup entrant
RACING Victoria informed connections of the Melbourne Cup-nominated Trip To Rhodos that they will not be able to bring the horse into Australia due to quarantine restrictions.
The Czech Republic does not have an agreement with the Australian Government covering the importation of horses which would require Trip To Rhodos to spend 60 days in quarantine at an approved county before it could head to Melbourne.
Racing Victoria unsuccessfully applied for an exemption for Trip To Rhodos which was set to become the first Czech Republic-trained runner in the Melbourne Cup.
Racing Victoria’s international officer Leigh Jordan is disappointed about the news and looks to make it viable for future horses from the Czech Republic to enter Australia.
“The connections were extremely keen to contest the Melbourne Cup and are naturally very disappointed that they will not be able to do so,” Jordan said.
“While the horse is permitted to travel freely throughout Europe, the fact that he is based in the Czech Republic has meant that he cannot satisfy Australian quarantine protocols in time to contest this year’s Cup and thus he won’t be coming.
“We now hope to work with the Australian Government over the next 12 months on what opportunities exist to allow future entries from the Czech Republic to travel more freely to Australia.”
Fellow international runner Order Of St George is also unlikely to travel after receiving top weight in the 2016 Caulfield Cup.
Trainer Aidan O’Brien stated earlier this year that his runner won’t be heading to Melbourne if it’s given a big weight and Sportsbet has subsequently adjusted its odds to $17 after holding steady at $12 throughout the week.
The Darren Weir-trained Signoff is the new equal-favourite at $17.