A potentially nasty incident at Newmarket was avoided on Thursday when a pane of glass fell from the main grandstand on to seats below.

Racing was taking place for the first time on the Rowley Mile at Headquarters since the resumption of racing – and the absence of spectators might well have been a blessing on this occasion.

Amy Starkey, who runs Newmarket as East Regional Director for Jockey Club Racecourses, said: “A window fell out of the Champions Gallery on the third floor on to the level two seating for no explained reason. We are now investigating why and how it’s occurred.

“Clearly it is very concerning and thankfully we are staging racing behind closed doors so no members of the public or our team have access to the area.”

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