Racing at Wexford was abandoned after three races due to unsafe ground.
Clerk Of The Course Paddy Graffin said: "I had concerns about remedial work carried out on the course six weeks ago and following two fatalities earlier today I informed the stewards that I could not stand over the safety of the course for both horses and most importantly jockeys."
"When I arrived here yesterday two-and-a-half hours before the first race I noticed that remedial work had been carried out on the track. A compaction breaking machine had been used. I believed the work had been passed by the Inspector Of Courses and rang him (Val O'Connell) to confirm he was happy with the course."
"We had no problems with racing yesterday until the riders in the Chase unanimously expressed concerns about the ground approaching the last fence. With the help of the groundstaff we moved the entire chase track this morning and re-sited the last fence.”
“Following an incident in the second race today when Sandpit House slipped up on the approach to the second last hurdle I positioned myself at that point of the course for the following race, but while there was no repeat incident there another horse was injured further up the track and I then informed the stewards that I couldn’t stand over the condition of the track.”
“95% of the ground is perfect, but it is like a minefield. If a horse gallops over a patch of the ground where the compaction breaking machine was used they break through the surface.”
“Walking the track doesn’t show up the problem. It is only when the weight of a horse travelling at 30mph hits the ground.”
Two horse broke legs in the three races run this afternoon and one rider, Paddy Kennedy, was taken to hospital with a suspected broken wrist.
