equine injuries

Eighteen-year-old jockey Axel Concepcion, who is Maryland's top apprentice this year, has been suspended 30 days for "extremely careless" riding in a Sept. 21 race at Delaware Park that resulted in the euthanization of a rival horse that had fallen. The Sept. 28 Delaware stewards' ruling stated that Concepcion failed "to control and guide his mount, Backwoods Boogie (Red Rocks [IRE]), leaving the starting gate, impeding several horses, and causing the horse Trumpence (Eskendereya) to fall, which resulted in a fatal injury to Trumpence. Due to the fallen horse, the...

Editor's note: Bill Casner, a long-time participant in many facets of racing, is probably best known for founding WinStar Farm with Kenny Troutt and winning the 2010 GI Kentucky Derby with Super Saver. Among Casner's many roles in the sport have been founding director of the Race for Education and Kentucky Equine Education Program (KEEP). He has sold his interest in WinStar to Troutt and currently operates as Casner Racing. Horse racing is in a firestorm. We are at survival tipping point. The decisions that are made in the short...

The Maryland Jockey Club confirmed the cancellation of live racing at Laurel Park through Sunday, Dec. 5 as work continues to complete repairs to the track and to analyze recent equine injuries. While racing is suspended, the Maryland Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association and the Maryland Jockey Club are working with industry experts to analyze surface composition and maintenance procedures directed at the safest possible racing surface. According to a MJC press release: "Until now, and through collaborative measures among industry participants, Maryland racing has experienced the lowest fatality rate in its...

Santa Anita, which concluded its 16-day Autumn Meet Oct. 25 with 1,106 horses racing and 51,200 training sessions since Sept. 5., when the Del Mar Summer Meet was winding down, had no racing or training fatalities during that time. The meet was pushed back due to the Bobcat Fire in the neighboring San Gabriel Mountains and the track did not host live racing until Sept. 25. The main dirt track at the Arcadia oval has not had a single racing fatality in 2020, including during the Winter/Spring Meet which began...

DAN METZGER, PRESIDENT, TOBA The top priority for our sport in 2020 is the enhancement of equine health and safety. We are facing other important challenges, but none nearly as critical as the health and safety of the Thoroughbred racehorse. We must reduce the number of fatal injuries of horses at the racetrack and demonstrate that the industry can work together to implement the needed reforms. We need to embrace new and existing technologies and policies that will significantly reduce the number of equine injuries on the racetrack.