Problems hit Ffos Las and Chepstow racecourses

Plunkett wins the inaugural race at Ffos Las racecourse

Wales' two leading racecourses have been struck blows, with Ffos Las facing a cut in its 2011 fixtures and Chepstow abandoning a race meeting.

The British Horseracing Authority (BHA) has provisionally cut Ffos Las's meetings in 2011 from 28 to 16.

"We are seeking an urgent meeting," said Tim Long, the general manager and clerk at the Carmarthenshire course.

Chepstow has abandoned Thursday's evening meeting because of safety concerns over the ground conditions.

The big Bank Holiday Monday meeting (30 August) is also said to be "potentially" under threat, with the possibility raised that the card will be switched to Bath.

"We'll have a clearer picture over the weekend," Chepstow clerk Keith Ottesen told BBC Sport Wales.

"We discovered some areas of unstable turf on the racecourse.

There's no evidence of our earlier problem with leatherjacket larvae, it could be a fungal problem Chepstow clerk Keith Ottesen

"There are five or six areas. They are not particularly large, but they give cause for concern for horses galloping in flat races at high speed.

"We've taken samples and sent them for analysis, but decided in the interests of the safety of the horses and jockeys not to go ahead.

"It was a big decision to make because we have to take care of all our customers, our owners and trainers, but the safety grounds override everything else."

Ottesen added that it was "too early to say" whether the turf problems are related to the trouble with leatherjacket larvae that caused the course to be shut five years ago.

"There's no evidence of the earlier problem," he said. "It could be a fungal problem."

Meanwhile, the proposed slashing of fixtures at Ffos Las is a major blow to the Trimsaran track which opened June 2009 to become the first new turf horseracing course in the United Kingdom for 80 years.

The cuts are part of the BHA's proposal to suspend 150 fixtures in 2011, plans that they say "will only be reconsidered if racecourses and the Horsemen's Group agree a basis for their allocation and make a proposal to the Board".

"Naturally we're very disappointed at the news," Long told BBC Sport Wales.

It's still a very vibrant business and none of these issues are insurmountable Ffos Las general manager and clerk Tim Long

"It's removing our opportunities to trade. Sixteen is not a sufficient number of fixtures to run a business.

"It would obviously have an enormous impact on our fledgling business which has already been a great success and has attracted tens of thousands of visitors to west Wales.

"We're going to seek an urgent meeting with the BHA and all other interested parties to find a way to minimise the reduction.

"Ffos Las is an extremely well designed dual-purpose track that has brought nothing but credit to the horse racing industry, I think that will seriously work in our favour."

Despite his disappointment, Long retained an optimistic long-term outlook.

"It would be very easy to document racing's problems," he said.

"But even in this time of recession we're seeing attendances holding up and the corporate side is strong.

"People are coming and enjoying the racing, it's still a very vibrant business and none of these issues are insurmountable."