MELBOURNE (AFP) — Melbourne Cup organisers insisted Friday that withdrawals due to an equine flu outbreak would not result in a second-string field contesting Australia's richest horse race.
There had been fears the Melbourne Cup, known in Australia as "the race that stops the nation," would feature a severely weakened field because of the flu outbreak in New South Wales and Queensland states.
But Racing Victoria chief executive Stephen Allanson said that while horses from the affected states would not appear, a number of overseas thoroughbreds would still line up at Flemington racetrack on November 6.
"All the news weve had out of them, its all positive and theyll be coming," Allanson said. "The Irish are coming, English are coming."
He said organisers were also expecting horses from the Gulf states, although he confirmed two Japanese horses had been withdrawn.
Stayers Delta Blues and Pop Rock completed an unprecedented Japanese one-two in the race last year but will not defend the title.
Allanson said the horses coming into the race as replacements were high quality animals.
"This will just give others the chance that would qualify somewhat lower than the ones that might be coming from NSW," he said.
Racing in New South Wales has been hit hard by the cancellation of its lucrative spring carnival after 488 horses tested positive for the virus and another 1,600 showing symptoms.
The loss of the Sydney spring carnival is expected to cost the industry hundreds of millions of dollars, although Sydney-based trainer Gai Waterhouse suggested the event could be switched to the summer months.
"We have to try to find some good out of all this," Waterhouse said.
"Everyone is very down at the moment, the equine influenza outbreak is terrible news but we just have to get on with life and do the best we can."
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