Southwell Racecourse, a thoroughbred horse racing venue in Nottinghamshire, England, will finally return to full working capacity. According to the venue’s official announcement, its refurbishment has been completed, allowing it to completely reopen.
The Damage Took Almost a Year to Fully Fix
Southwell Racecourse, for context, suffered extensive flooding damage in October 2023 when Storm Babet hit the United Kingdom. At that time, areas of the racecourse were submerged, causing significant damage.
The racing property was able to reopen roughly a month after its initial flooding but, because of the damage, did not immediately reopen fully. Instead, the venue could only function at limited capacity for a time, allowing racecourse officials to carry out important repair work.
As a result, Southwell Racecourse managed to only offer access to approximately 100 members of the public for the £100,000 BETUK Winter Derby on Saturday 24th February.
Fortunately, the hard work of the Southwell Racecourse team has finally paid off, allowing the property to once again welcome the public with no restrictions on numbers.
The racecourse is set to officially reopen on August 2, 2024.
Southwell Is Looking Forward to Welcoming Crowds
Mark Clayton, Southwell’s executive director, commented on the exciting news and praised his team’s efforts to get the racecourse back to full working order.
I would like to thank all the staff for their hard work and support during this tricky time. I would also like to thank Southwell racegoers for their patience and we look forward to providing you with the best customer experience possible in the coming weeks.
Mark Clayton, exec director, Southwell
Clayton explained that the repair work initially focused on the track itself, the stable yard and a temporary weighing room in order to allow racing events to resume. Luckily, even at limited capacity, the property was able to host some 47 meetings since reopening on November 24, 2023.
Now, however, the full refurbishment is complete. According to Clayton, the Southwell team is looking forward to welcoming full crowds back to the track. For reference, Southwell’s six-race card kicks off on August 2.
Clayton added that the Southwell Golf Course had remained open most of the time after the devastating store but the clubhouse had been closed for flood damage. The Southwell team is set to wrap up repair works soon and reopen the clubhouse on August 10, 2024.
