Under starter’s orders for the return of Easter Saturday races at Musselburgh - Sarah Montgomery

It’s been a long three years with our fair share of unexpected hurdles but, finally, we’re all delighted to be at the starting gate to welcome spectators back for the first Easter Saturday racing at Musselburgh since 2019.

Sarah Montgomery is Senior Commercial and Operations Manager at Musselburgh Racecourse

Thirty-six months ago none of us would have believed the upheaval ahead or that the going would be so heavy but when Covid-19 descended the odds were against all of us.

Racing was suspended on March 18, 2020, less than a month ahead of this big calendar event, the Betway Easter Saturday race day. We had hoped to stage behind-closed-doors meetings which would have complied with Scottish Government guidelines but our governing body the British Racing Authority halted all horseracing in the UK that day and the Easter event was one of the first casualties.

Since then we have been able to resume racing and it’s been fantastic to have spectators back. We were also delighted to play a small part in the vaccination programme by running a pop-up NHS Lothian Covid-19 vaccination clinic. But we have so missed the Easter fixture – it’s not only a major event for us racing enthusiasts at Musselburgh but it’s also one of the highlights of the sporting calendar, a major flagship races of the year and part of the Sensational Seven Series.

So we’re thrilled to open our gates once again to spectators for a spectacular race day, not least because it features the prestigious £100,000 Queen's Cup, which received the royal seal of approval from HM The Queen, and is THE race of the day. The monarch, a huge horseracing fan, approved this race title at our Bi-Centenary raceday in 2016 and it’s our biggest race of the year.

Musselburgh Racecourse has always been synonymous with first-class racing and this Easter Saturday around 6,000 racing fans will be enjoying an afternoon of top-quality racing and exciting entertainment with us.

It’s a big family fun day out and we’ve got a whole dedicated kids’ area in the ‘Clip Clop Zone’ with a jam-packed programme of free games, face painting stalls, plus free fairground rides. The Easter Bunny will be visiting for the youngest racegoers and our Mini Queen’s Cup will see children racing on small inflatable ponies in front of the Grandstand.

We’re also hosting a wide range of delicious street food stalls and hope fans will help us celebrate by making a whole day of it.

Hopefully this long-awaited Easter event marks the start of a full calendar and we can look forward to all our usual events throughout the year. The winning post is already in sight…

Sarah Montgomery is Senior Commercial and Operations Manager at Musselburgh Racecourse.

Easter Saturday is part of The Sensational 7 Series - the biggest and best race days across the year and tickets for the race meetings are on sale now with an Advanced Adult offer available to purchase until midnight on the 15th April 2022 to SAVE £5pp. All children aged 17 and under go free, when accompanied by a paying adult. For full range of ticket information please visit www.musselburgh-racecourse.co.uk/tickets/easter-saturday-16-04-2022