In consideration of the most recent advice from the Government, the Grandstand Media Ltd. senior management team have met to discuss contingency plans for Horse of the Year Show (HOYS) and the British Showjumping National Championships (BSNC).
We are extremely mindful of the impact COVID-19 is having on the whole events industry including sporting events like BSNC and HOYS. In this time of uncertainty, we believe it is important for the industry to remain strong and united, while prioritising the health and safety of all those involved. There have been many cases over the last few weeks of affected exhibitions and events being able to act swiftly by rescheduling to later this year, and we remain positive that this is an indication of the event industry’s resilience and ability to adapt quickly to any circumstances.
At Grandstand Media Ltd. the health, safety and wellbeing of our employees, competitors, event attendees, tradestand holders, sponsors, volunteers and partners is of the utmost importance to us. This means that we are closely monitoring advice provided by the World Health Organisation, Public Health England and the Local Government, and continually updating our processes and policies accordingly.
Currently both Horse of the Year Show (HOYS) and the British Showjumping National Championships (BSNC) will proceed as planned, however it is important to recognise that this is a fluid and ever-changing situation and we will be guided by the latest government recommendations. At this time there is no direct advice regarding large events taking place later on in the year, we are therefore continuing to organise and prepare our events. We are doing this to ensure that competitors and attendees will have the best event experience, while also limiting the impacts that cancellation would cause to our customers and the industry as a whole.
Part of our preparation involves creating contingency plans that will ensure there are ways to fill HOYS qualifying spaces in the face of multiple qualifiers being forced to postpone or cancel. These amendments to the qualifying season will be implemented with the view to sustain the quality of the competition as much as possible. We will be working to accommodate showing qualifiers later in the season while being mindful of the best interests and safety of our HOYS competitors. We will continue communicating closely with British Showjumping, the National Governing Body for the sport, alongside showing qualifier organisers and will be assisting and supporting them as much as possible in this unprecedented time.
At this point in time we are set to proceed with our committed marketing initiatives. We believe it is vital to the overall show experience that we continue to maintain awareness about the event. Information regarding COVID-19 and its impact on events is constantly changing, it is therefore very difficult to change all marketing messaging to accommodate these updates. For the latest information we advise checking our social channels and website.
We want to take this opportunity to reassure those who have bought tickets for Horse of the Year Show that their purchase is safe. Should HOYS be forced to cancel or reschedule in the future, ticket purchasers will be offered the chance to rebook or be refunded their ticket price (excluding associated fees) as per our terms of purchase.
We fully understand the potentially devastating effect that the spread of coronavirus is having on everyone’s daily lives and the responsibility we have as an event organiser to ensure the safety of those attending our shows. We will therefore be continuously reviewing our policies and ensuring that we keep all stakeholders up to date with any new developments and the impact these may have.
The latest information about both events, including HOYS qualifiers, will be published on their respective websites, hoys.co.uk/news/category/coronavirus and bsnationalchampionships.com/news. Any queries can be directed to press@grandstand.co.uk.
ENDS
For more information on Horse of the Year Show 2020 or the British Showjumping National Championships 2020, please contact the Press Office, Grandstand Media Ltd. Tel: 02476 858 205. Email: press@grandstand.co.uk.
