Racing Victoria (RV) has announced that tomorrow’s (Saturday, 9 March) bet365 Edenhope Cup meeting has been abandoned.
The decision takes into consideration the Friday 4pm update from the Bureau of Meteorology (BOM), the latest advice from RV Veterinary Services regarding the welfare of horses travelling home from the meeting, and from RV Stewards regarding the condition of the track following an inspection late this afternoon.
The BOM is predicting temperatures to increase earlier in the western districts than other parts of the state. The current forecast is for the temperature at Edenhope to reach 38 degrees by 2pm and peak thereafter at 39 degrees.
Stewards were concerned with sections of the track that have presented wetter than others. With an early morning start scheduled due to the extreme weather, there is insufficient time for those sections to improve.
An option to postpone the meeting was considered, however it was not deemed appropriate given the extreme temperatures forecast across the remainder of the long weekend. At this time, the meeting is not expected to be rescheduled during the 2023-24 season.
The decision was made today to provide certainty to participants given the early start and distances many have to travel.