Big week in Baden-Baden - Iffezheim from 29 August to 5 September
- Online presale begins on August 2, 16.00 / limited number of spectators admitted with "3G plus mask" / Baden Galopp initially offers 5000 seats / four racing days with six group races / international four-legged stars expected for the Great Week -
"Advance sales start on August 2 - and now it's up to all of us to make a great Great Week possible!" Stephan Buchner, managing partner of Baden Galopp GmbH & Co KG, Iffezheim, is proud of his small team, which has put together a very special event in less than five months since taking over the racecourse: "For the Great Week, we expect international four-legged stars and winners, we present six group races on four racing days and we offer racing prizes worth almost one million euros - plus the Golden Whip, probably the most coveted honorary prize in German gallop racing."
From 4 p.m. on Monday, August 2, tickets for all four race days on August 29 and September 1, 4 and 5 can be purchased online directly via www.ticketmaster.de. Interested parties can also reach the supplier via the Baden Galopp homepage at www.badengalopp.de. Whether and in what form there will be a box office depends on the development of the pandemic and advance sales. The race days will be extended this year and offer eleven or twelve races; on September 4, the first race starts at 12:00, the other three race days already start at 10:00.
Baden Galopp strongly recommends purchasing tickets online in good time: "On the one hand, visitors thus secure a ticket from the greatly reduced range, and on the other hand they save themselves, all other guests and also us crowds and time," says Buchner.
Lawyer Buchner explains the situation: "With an incidence of less than 35, the current Corona Ordinance Sport of the state of Baden-Württemberg allows a maximum of 50 percent spectators on the racetrack, if they are fully vaccinated, recovered or tested." "And," Buchner continued, "as with the finest of all gallop events at Ascot in England, the rule is: wear a mask." To be on the safe side, Baden Galopp is initially offering only 5000 tickets per race day.
Baden Galopp is cautious, because the Big Week remains dependent on two unknown factors: One is the development of infection numbers in the coming weeks. The other unknown factor is August 23: Six days before the start of the Great Week, the new Corona Ordinance of the State of Baden-Württemberg will be published. Buchner assures: "As a ticket buyer, you are on the safe side: If the number of spectators has to be reduced, the ticket price will of course be refunded."
"We don't know what the numbers will look like."
Baden-Galopp has developed a flexible hygiene concept that can be adapted to the current situation. This includes staggered admission, where visitors can check in with the respective certificate (Vaccinated - Convalescent - Tested) via Luca app or Corona warning app and their ID card or passport. At the same time, the citizen test must be no more than 24 hours old. "Of course, we also accept the QR code on paper or vaccination cards - but the digital smartphone app avoids paperwork and makes the procedure easier and faster for everyone involved," says Buchner.
When it comes to safety, the racecourse boss sees the racecourse as having an advantage over most other sports arenas: "On our huge grounds, people spread out. In addition, our guests don't crowd public transportation, but generally come by car or two-wheeler - for that reason alone, little alcohol is consumed." Nevertheless, Buchner worries, "If the incidence rises above 35, under the current regulation the crowd would have to be limited to 500 - that would really be a problem. But we remain optimistic - in every respect."
