Sniffer dogs will be in operation at all Goodwood fixtures following a mass brawl at its opening raceday of the 2018 season.
The racecourse is enhancing its security for “all future fixtures” following an “extensive review” of the fight involving around 50 people on 5 May.
Sussex Police will now be present at every raceday and all members of the Goodwood security teams will wear high-visibility clothing.
Sniffer dogs, which have previously been used at certain fixtures, will be at every fixture and there will be an added push to encourage racegoers to use amnesty drug bins.
“We have conducted a thorough and extensive review of everything that happened at our first fixture, of our existing policies and held a detailed consultation with our safety advisory group and Sussex Police,” said general manager Alex Eade.
“We have also been working with the Racecourse Association and our other Large Independent Racecourse colleagues to ensure that we are part of the industry-wide crackdown on anti-social behaviour.”
Random bag searches will continue to take place at all entrances and anyone found with drugs on them will be evicted.
Article continues below…
You might also be interested in:
Ugly scenes as four racegoers seriously injured in mass brawl
More than 50 people were involved in the brawl that happened on the first day of Goodwood’s 2018 racing calendar
More ugly scenes as fighting mars second weekend of racing
A spokesman for Ascot said the racecourse is “reviewing everything” ahead of Royal meeting following raceday brawl
Goodwood already has a strict ID policy at its bars. The “four-pint rule”, where visitors cannot buy more than four pints on each trip to the bar, will be introduced and free water “hydration stations” will be available on every bar.
“We have concluded that we will make our security teams more visible,” added Mr Eade.
“We have changed some personnel and the composition of our rapid response teams as well as taking even stronger measures to discourage drug use and excessive alcohol consumption.
“Sussex Police have agreed to have a presence at each of our future fixtures and we continue to work with them on deploying other covert and overt methods of deterring anti-social behaviour and drug use.
“We are also still helping them with their enquiries following the incident on 5 May.”
For all the latest news analysis, competition reports, interviews, features and much more, don’t miss Horse & Hound magazine, on sale every Thursday.
This week’s edition (31 May) is a training special, including a look at the world’s top trainers and whether you should have multiple coaches. Also check out our summer clothing guide, interview with showjumper and recent winner of the Hamburg Derby, Matt Sampson and feature on health problems in miniature horses
Filed under: Riding Tips
Like this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed and get loads more!