A series of new one-hour evening programmes on Irish racing on consecutive Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays in June and early July on RTE television have been confirmed by Horse Racing Ireland and RTE on Tuesday. These new programmes, to be broadcasted on RTE2 and RTE Player with 10 extra meetings confirmed up to mid-July, will be held from 7-8 p.m. on Fridays and from 5-6 p.m. on Saturdays/Sundays. Hugh Cahill will be the main presenter, with guest analysts joining regulars Jane Mangan, Ted Walsh and Ruby Walsh. All of RTE Sport's racing coverage will comply with HRI's COVID-19 protocols around social distancing for behind closed doors meetings. Irish racing resumes on June 8 after it ended in March due to the coronavirus outbreak. Live RTE coverage begins for the first Classics of the Flat racing season at The Curragh for the G1 Irish 2000 Guineas and G1 Irish 1000 Guineas on June 12 and 13, respectively. The programme schedule is as follows:
- Friday 12th June, The Curragh
- Saturday 13th June, The Curragh
- Friday 19th June, Gowran Park
- Saturday 20th June, Naas
- Sunday 21st June, Leopardstown
- June 26th – The Curragh
- June 27th – The Curragh (The Irish Derby)
- June 28th – The Curragh
HRI Chief Executive Brian Kavanagh said, “RTÉ has always been very supportive of racing in Ireland and today's announcement confirms that commitment. The new one-hour evening programmes are an opportunity for Irish racing to attract people to our sport and educate those new fans on what makes racing so exciting. We appreciate the flexibility shown by the RTÉ team around the new dates for the Irish Guineas in June and really look forward to their live coverage of our opening Classics, as well as this new departure.”
“Live Sport is an integral part of Irish life and RTÉ Sport is delighted that it is returning across all RTÉ platforms,” said RTE Group Head of Sport Decan McBennett. “Horse Racing in this country is a key component of that and Horse Racing Ireland are to be commended for getting racing back in a safe and responsible manner.”
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