Supreme Ventures Racing & Entertainment Limited (SVREL) has announced the immediate shuttering of all racing operations, which includes racing at Caymanas Park and the island’s massive network of OTB operators.
The move comes at the end of a week that has seen mixed signals coming from the organisation on the continuation of horseracing, as the battle to contain the coronavirus pandemic continues to wreak turmoil on the global sporting landscape. Last week, the SVREL had announced that its operations would be closed but reopened them the next day and has now closed them again.
According to communication released by the SVREL, after closing operations in line with the Disaster Risk Management Declaration of Disaster Order 2020, they were given the go-ahead to re-open operations. The Betting Gaming and Lotteries chairman rescinded the shutdown order the following day, but it seems not everyone was on the same page as the company claims it faced some amount of disruptions in its operations.
“SVREL in cooperation with the BGLC and the relevant authorities immediately shut down operations as per Disaster Risk Management Declaration of Disaster Order 2020. The company was then given the go-ahead to re-open operations and the OTB network on Thursday, March 19th, after the BGLC Chairman announced a retraction of the notice on Wednesday, March 18th,” the release explained.
“Unfortunately, operations were again affected during spectator less racing on Saturday, March 21st. Police shut down several OTB operations across the country, including Charles’s OTB in Mandeville which was padlocked, effectively shutting out both the owners and customers,” it continued.
“While we have tried to cooperate fully with the orders as we understand them, the situation has become untenable. Based on the feedback coming from our retailers the security forces seem to be unclear regarding the position of the regulator. We cannot put our OTB network at risk for fines, imprisonment, shutdowns, and unnecessary spend.”
The track is expected to continue housing and sheltering horses with all personnel required for those purposes mandated to adhere to social distancing and other required public health protocols.