Following our announcement earlier today that the 2020 Speedway season has been suspended, we have made the decision to postpone the club’s official Press & Practice, scheduled for this Friday 20th March. Unfortunately, this also means that Stuart Robson’s Farewell cannot go ahead on Saturday and will be rescheduled, with a later date to be confirmed.
Earlier today, the Speedway Control Bureau (SCB) and British Speedway Promoters Association (BSPA) decided to postpone the British Speedway Season until at least the 15th April in light of advice given by the government regarding the current Coronavirus pandemic.
Speaking about the current situation, promoter Jitendra Duffill explained, “We are experiencing exceptional circumstances caused by the Coronavirus crisis. It is regretful and devastating to all of us that we have had to make the decision to postpone our season. It’s not a decision anyone wanted to make, but it was absolutely the correct decision given the escalating situation and its consequences. The BSPA and SCB have reacted to government advice and have acted in the best interests of everybody, to ensure the safety of our supporters, staff and riders.”
Duffill added, “There is a lot more to this situation than the direct risks faced by the spread of Coronavirus. We currently have riders who are on ‘lockdown’ in their home countries and unable to travel, whereas others have made the decision to return home with the uncertainty surrounding the length of this season’s suspension, which is completely understandable. Jordan Stewart for example, cannot find work elsewhere in the UK as a condition of his Visa and he doesn’t want to rely on us to look after him financially. He is a proud individual and likes to stand on his own two feet. Nobody can tell these riders how long they may have to go without an income and they have to do what is best for them and their families.”
“We also face the issue of having riders and key staff being kept in isolation if they develop or come into contact with somebody who has the virus. Many of our volunteers and supporters, as well as our directors, are over the age of 70 and have been advised to isolate themselves, which is also a big problem for all of us. We face a very desperate situation and developments over the last 2 days meant that starting our season would have been irresponsible.”
Redcar Bears Season Ticket holders have not been forgotten and can be assured that they will be compensated by the Promotion should the number of fixtures end up being reduced. Duffill explained, “We will do everything we can to ensure that Season Ticket holders are given the 19 fixtures that their season ticket promises them. However, if this becomes impossible due to a further suspension of the 2020 season, we will refund holders on a per match basis so that they still end up paying the same price per meeting over the course of the year. If anybody has any questions or concerns, I’d be more than happy to respond to them by email if they contact me at duffill.redcarbears@gmail.com”
Further to that, anybody who has a ticket for last years curtailed Teesside Silver Helmet will receive £5 discount on entry to any Redcar hosted fixture in 2020. Season Ticket holders will be entitled to 2 free programmes to any Redcar team or individual fixture as an alternative.
The promotion would like to apologise further for the delay to the season and thank everybody for their understanding and support. We stress that we are desperate to get this season underway and will do so as soon as it is possible. In the meantime, we offer our thoughts and best wishes to anybody affected by Coronavirus and urge our supporters to continue to listen to government advice.
