European Trainer - April to June 2020 - issue 69

ISSUE 69 – APRIL-JUNE 2020 £6.95 www.trainermagazine.com

THE QUARTERLY MAGAZINE FOR THE TRAINING ING A AND ND D DEVELOPMENT EVELOPMENT O OF FT THE HE T THOROUGHBRED HOR ROUGH

STAY CALM AND KEEP TRAINING

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| OPINION |

NEW

PUBLISHER’S OPINION

GILES ANDE RSON O ur cover image for this issue really says it all.

Horses still need to be trained and we all need to take precautions to limit the spread of coronavirus. Turning all racehorses out is simply not an option and when life returns to normal and racing does resume we need to be ready to pick up the pieces.

Apart from our cover and this page, we have purposefully decided not to cover the virus within this issue of the magazine. Instead, we concentrate on topics of importance to the racing industry. Life will go on and one day this virus will be a memory, but for now stay safe and take the necessary precautions to halt the spread of the virus.

EASE&EXCEL CUBES

low starch support for problem horses

From Guy Heymans – Chairman of the European Trainers’ Federation Dear all, First of all, our thoughts go out to all of you coping with the terrible consequences of the coronavirus pandemic.

We want to spread a really positive social message.

It’s about what we can do to actually turn the tide of this epidemic for our racing industry, but it’s also about supporting each other. There’s so much fear and anxiety out there at the moment that people feel helpless, but we want to give you something you can do as a trainer, breeder, owner or as an industry professional.

Racing is a family and we need to support each other and the racing industry. We need to show the world how we react in a crisis during the coming days, weeks and months.

A call to all owners with a request to show solidarity. We invite them not to withdraw their horses from the trainer’s stables. Even though we have difficult days, we have to think about the future of the racing industry and animal welfare. Most European countries have confirmed that all horseracing will be suspended and postponed for now.

Although our first duty is to look after the health of the public, racehorses must also be taken care of and trained.

It’s not possible to put them in ‘lock down’, they need exercise.

Think about social distancing, about hygiene, provide the necessary information to your employees and stable staff, but try to maintain your training activities with strict measures.

Now, as we collectively face down a global pandemic, this is going to be an international effort to win the coronavirus fight and we all have a crucial part to play. Together, we all need to stay calm, to act rationally and to use our common sense.

As a racing community we will make it.

Guy Heymans

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ISSUE 69 TRAINERMAGAZINE.COM

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| CONTENTS |

REGULARS

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04 Contributors 06 ETF Members 08 TopSpec Trainer

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of the Quarter – David Cottin

78 Product Focus ISS SUE

69

Visit trainermagazine.com to download the digital edition of this issue.

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CONTENTS F E AT U R E S

10 Profile – Stephane Wattel

John Gilmore portrays French trainer Stephane Wattel, who only came into racing after his school days had ended and had never even ridden a horse before.

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Girth development – what's being done to adapt this key piece of tack

Dr Russell Mackechnie-Guire shows how girths have been scientifically proven to have an impact on performance.

Groundbreaking research has revealed the effect girths can have on the locomotion of the galloping racehorse.

24 Substance abuse in racing

Lissa Oliver investigates the effects of substance abuse and secondary knock-on effects for the racing industry due to the risk of cross-contamination. Alcohol and drug dependency has been a recognised aspect of the racing world but is becoming more of an issue due to the introduction of testing and more awareness of underlying causes and tragic consequences.

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Nutrition – “bon appétit” – maintaining appetite throughout the season

50 Professional development for trainers

Lissa Oliver investigates if we should fear or embrace continuing professional development. CPD is mandatory in many professions. Just how do our industry professionals continue to learn?

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Outlook for stem cell therapy role in tendon regeneration

Establishing what a normal appetite looks like, Catherine Rudenko examines ways to encourage and maintain appetite throughout a season. The best planned feeding program in the world is of no use if the horse simply does not eat as required to sustain performance.

Debbie Guest is looking into the different treatments for horse tendon injuries that have been tested over the years and why up to date none of them have resulted in significant improvements.

36 Captivating the next

64 Staying power – is the

generation of racehorse owners

Lissa Oliver investigates ways of captivating the younger age group as the next generation of racehorse owners and why only golf has an older average television audience age. Horse racing does nothing to engender a rift between young and old.

French staying race division running out of steam?

John Gilmore fills us in on one of the potential reasons why the French staying race division is tiring down and that is the lack of quality middle distance horses being trained in France over the past few years.

44 How PET scanning reduces

72 News from the European

Dr. Mathieu Spriet updates us on the installation of a PET scanner at Santa Anita Park, the iconic Southern California racetrack, currently under public and political pressure due to a high number of horse fatalities. A PET is the latest advance in equine imaging specifically designed to image horse legs.

Dr. Paull Khan reports on the Asian Racing Conference in Cape Town, the concept of stewarding from a remote ‘bunker’ and the Saudi Cup experience.

catastrophic fractures

@t ra in er _m ag

Mediterranean Horseracing Federation

80 Thoroughbred Tales

Sally Ann Grassick explains what is behind her Thoroughbred Tales concept.

/t ra in er ma ga zi ne

/t ra in er ma ga zi ne

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Editorial Director/Publisher Giles Anderson Sub-Editor Jana Cavalier Design ATG Media Advert Production Charlotte Fossey Circulation/Website Kerstin Coward, Anna Alcock Advertising Sales Giles Anderson, Anna Alcock Photo Credits: Alamy, Giles Anderson, ARCSA2020, Lisa Beattie, www.focusonracing. com, Laura Green, Dr. Paull Khan, Catherine Rudenko, Eclipse Sportswire, Shutterstock, Riaan Janse van Rensburg Cover Photograph Frank Sorge

Trainer magazine is published by Anderson & Co Publishing Ltd. This magazine is distributed for free to all ETF members. Editorial views expressed are not necessarily those of the ETF. Additional copies can be purchased for ÂŁ6.95 (ex P&P). No part of this publication may be reproduced in any format without the prior written permission of the publisher.

Printed in the European Union For all editorial and advertising queries please contact: Anderson & Co. Publishing Tel: +44 (0) 1380 816777 Fax: +44 (0) 1380 816778 email: info@trainermagazine.com www.trainermagazine.com Issue 69

ISSN 17580293

9 771478 961223

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John Gilmore is a photojournalist based in Chantilly. His work regularly appears on websites such as, thoroughbredracing.com and bloodhorse.com. Gilmore attends all the major Parisian meetings throughout the year and at Deauville during the summer months.

Sally Ann Grassick comes from a strong Irish racing background. She spent nine years in France as a presenter for Equidia (the French racing channel) covering international racing and is currently on the presenting team for ITV Racing in Britain and RTE Racing in Ireland.

She also writes as a freelance journalist and translator, for publications such as European Bloodstock News, International Thoroughbred and Jour de Galop, and rides as an amateur jockey.

Dr. Debbie Guest, BSc (Hons), PhD completed a BSc in Genetics at the University of Leeds in 2002, followed by a PhD on the transcriptional control of neuronal differentiation in stem cells which she completed in 2005. She then joined the Equine Fertility Unit in Newmarket as a post-doctoral scientist to derive and characterise equine embryonic stem cells.

This work continued when Debbie moved to the Animal Health Trust in 2007, where she began to investigate the therapeutic potential of embryonic stem cells for treating horse tendon injuries. Her research group is now also conducting research to derive stem cells from horses, dogs and cats with inherited diseases.

Dr. Paull Khan is an international horseracing consultant. He is SecretaryGeneral of the European & Mediterranean Horseracing Federation and Technical Advisor for Europe to the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities. His other clients include the British Horseracing Authority. Previously, Dr. Khan held many senior roles at Weatherbys, including Banking Director and Racing Director.

Dr. Russell Mackechnie-Guire runs Centaur Biomechanics and works with elite athletes in all equestrian sports, optimising performance and marginal gains. He recently gained a PhD in equine locomotion from the Royal Veterinary College Structure & Motion Lab. Russell is co-author of more than 30 published papers on horse-saddle-rider interaction.

Lissa Oliver lives in Co. Kildare, Ireland and is a regular contributor to The Irish Field and the Australian magazine, Racetrack. Lissa is also the author of several collections of short stories and two novels.

Catherine Rudenko is an independent registered nutritionist with a focus on thoroughbreds. Based in the UK Catherine has worked in the USA, Europe and Asia with trainers and studs creating feeds and feeding plans customised to their needs and climate.

With a keen interest in education and research Catherine works with professional bodies and universities to promote knowledge of nutrition and its importance in the management of thoroughbreds and other breeds.

Dr. Mathieu Spriet is an associate professor in the Department of Surgical and Radiological Sciences of the University of California Davis School of Veterinary Medicine. He initially graduated in veterinary medicine in Lyon, France, and is a founding member of the American College of Veterinary Radiology’s subspecialty of Equine Diagnostic Imaging and a Diplomate of the European College of Veterinary Diagnostic Imaging. Dr. Spriet has been instrumental in the development of the use of positron emission tomography (PET) on horse limbs.

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EUROPEAN TRAINERS’ FEDERATION AIMS and OBJECTIVES of the ETF:

a) To represent the interests of all member trainers’ associations in Europe. b) To liaise with political and administrative bodies on behalf of European trainers. c) To exchange information between members for the benefit of European trainers. d) To provide a network of contacts to assist each member to develop its policy and services to member trainers.

ETF REPRESENTATIVES Chairmanship: Guy Heymans (Belgium) Tel: +32 (0) 495 389 140 Email: heymans1@telenet.be

Vice Chairmanship:

Nicolas Clément (France) Tel: +33 (0)3 44 57 25 39 Fax: +33 (0)3 44 57 58 85 Email: entraineurs.de.galop@wanadoo.fr

AUSTRIA

Mrs Živa Prunk Tel: +38640669918 Email: ziva.prunk@gmail.com

CZECH REPUBLIC

Vice Chairmanship:

Treasureship:

Christian von der Recke (Germany) Tel: +49 (022 54) 84 53 14 Fax: +49 (022 54) 84 53 15 Email: recke@t-online.de

Michael Grassick (Ireland) Tel: +353 (0)45 522 981 Mobile: +353 (0)87 258 87 70 Fax: +353 (0)45 522 982 Email: office@irta.ie

HUNGARY

UNITED KINGDOM

Mr Botond Kovács Email: botond.kovacs@kincsempark.hu

ITALY

Rupert Arnold Tel: +44 (0) 1488 71719 Fax: +44 (0) 1488 73005 Email: r.arnold@racehorsetrainers.org

RUSSIA

Joseph Vana Tel: +42 (0) 6024 296 29 Email: horova@velka-chuchle.cz

Agostino Affe Email: affegaloppo@gmail.com

Olga Polushkina Email: p120186@yandex.ru

GREECE

NETHERLANDS

SLOVAKIA

Aggeliki Amitsis Tel: 30 229 908 1332+ Email: angieamitsis@yahoo.com

Geert van Kempen Mobile: +31 (0)6 204 02 830 Email: renstalvankempen@hotmail.com

GERMANY

NORWAY

Erika Mäder Tel: +49 (0) 2151 594911 Fax: +49 (0) 2151 590542 Email: trainer-und-jockeys@netcologne.de

Are Hyldmo Mobile: +47 984 16 712 Email: arehyldmo@hotmail.com

www.trainersfederation.eu

Jaroslav Brecka Email: jaroslav.brecka@gmail.com

SWEDEN

Caroline Malmborg Email: caroline@stallmalmborg.se

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1. Graham L. et al. J Vet Emerg Crit Care. 12:4 (2002) 279-282.

2. Graham L. Vet Clin North Am Equine Pract. 2006.

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Feed Balancers and Quality Horse Feeds

TOPSPEC TRAINER OF THE QUARTER

The TopSpec Trainer of the Quarter award has been won by David Cottin.

Cottin will receive £1,000 worth of TopSpec feed, supplements and additives as well as a consultation with one of their senior nutritionists.

Lissa Oliver or me, Cheltenham is the temple of jumping and the most prestigious place to win a race, it’s a dream come true,” says David Cottin, talking about Easysland’s Cross Country Chase success, the first Cheltenham Festival win of his training career.

Cottin has only been training in Chantilly, and in the tranquil second base in Liond’Angers in the Loire Valley, since September 2017 and his first runner was also his first winner, Amour Du Puy Noir. A former threetime champion jockey in France, amassing 13

“F

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Healy Racing

Gp1 wins and 732 wins, Cottin is the son of retired trainer Philippe Cottin. Having spent time in the UK with Andrew Balding, Paul Nicholls and Philip Hobbs, Cottin works alongside partner Amanda Zetterholm, former assistant to Mike de Kock.

Calm and tranquillity are Cottin’s by-words. At Chantilly, a sand paddock and two large grazing paddocks are used for daily turnout, while he has also taken over his father’s stable in western France, a perfect setting for breaking-in, training and resting horses.

“I used to love Cheltenham even as a child,” Cottin says, “and I had the race in mind for Easysland since early autumn, when I started to get him back for the track. My father trained for 25 years and he always said Easysland would be a very special cross-country horse, even when he was being broken in. He has been prepared by racing, I’m very easy on my horses at home. I wanted him to progress for his races, so he was not fit for his first race of the season, but he is unbeaten.”

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Formed by his father, a cross-country specialist, Cottin never schools his older horses in the morning, including Easysland. “With my young stock, we school a lot in the calm, with a lot of repetition to get the horses mechanised.

Repetition, repetition, repetition, not speed,” he reveals. “My father’s stable in the Loire Valley is three hours away and my horses go out to the calm of the country for breaks. They are all broken and pre-trained in the country and when they are ready to race they come to Chantilly for hard work.”

At Cheltenham, Cottin was expecting another good run from Easysland, who had won by seven lengths over the same course and distance in December. “He seemed really well at home, his coat had changed, he was in good form and it was a really big advantage to have come here in December and to know the track. The heavy ground was also in his favour. While he is only a six-year-old, with a crosscountry horse you have to train them when they are young over those jumps.

We have been very patient with him and that has paid off.

“I always dreamed of riding a winner here as a jockey and unfortunately it didn’t happen, but I’m really pleased to be here now, and it’s all down to the team at home who are very motivating. We have a lot of horses and a lot of staff. It was massive for them, they were all watching at home.”

Winning jockey Jonathan Plouganou says of Easysland, “He is the best crosscountry horse. He has beaten Tiger Roll, a real champion, so to beat him was special and now Easysland is the champion. This race is really special, it was an honour to ride in it, but to win it is even more important, especially in the cross-country which is a discipline I love, it means everything.”

As well as Easysland, Cottin has several nice older horses, including Paul’s Saga, who will be aimed at the Grande Course de Haies d’Auteuil, and Dalahast, who has the Grand Steeple-Chase de Paris as an objective.

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ISSUE 69 TRAINERMAGAZINE.COM

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PROFILE

DEAU VILLE ´S YEAR ROUN D TR AINER

STEPHANE WATTEL John Gilmore

10

Giles Anderson, John Gilmore

TRAINERMAGAZINE.COM ISSUE 69

| STEPHANE WATTEL |

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PROFILE

F

or the past 28 years Stephane Wattel has been doing a job he loves—training racehorses just a stone’s throw away from Deauville racecourse and infield training area.

There are 15 trainers installed in the vicinity, and Wattel is firmly established as one of the leaders. Last year his 76 horses won 44 races and €1,365,550 total prize money, plus an additional €600,000 in French premiums.

Wattel is still looking for his first Gp1 winner. Sacred Life (by Siyouni), his top two-year-old in 2017 was possibly denied this chance in the Criterium International at Saint Cloud 30 October, when a strike at Saint Cloud by racing staff after the first race caused the rest of the meeting to be abandoned. Last year on Arc day the Wattel-trained City Light (by Siyouni) was just beaten by One Master in the Prix de La Foret—the colt’s last race before going to stud at Haras D’Etreham. Sacred Path is now in training with Chad Brown in the states.

Stephane Wattel only came into racing after his school days had ended. “I was brought up in Paris. I had no family background in racing, and my father was director of a press business,” says Wattel. “At 18 years old, after a year at University studying biology, I dropped out and decided to learn English, ending up on a stud farm in Kentucky. I had always wanted to do something in agriculture and my mother, knowing Tim Richardson, gave me the opportunity to work at Stavros Niarchos’ stud where Miesque was born. It was a wonderful experience.”

Wattel stayed less than two seasons at Spring Oak Farm working as a lad, before returning to a similar job at the Niarchos’ Haras de Fresnay-Le-Buffard Normandy Stud for a couple more seasons. But he discovered what he really wanted to do in racing after a season at Beach House Stud in Newmarket.

“This was the home of Ardross and Pharly, and I wanted to learn how a commercial breeder prepared yearling horses for the sales. For the first time I had the breathtaking opportunity of seeing horses training on the vast expanse of Newmarket Heath in the morning.

It felt to me like the centre of racing, as I didn’t know anything about this side of the sport and had never even been to a race meeting before. On returning to France, after Newmarket, I wanted to learn more about the skills required to train horses.”

Turning to the Richardson family once again, Wattel found a position with Nicolas Madamet, who trained horses for the Niarchos family in Deauville. Madamet was the first trainer from the mid-80s who realised it was possible to train horses in Deauville all the year round, rather than just during the annual monthly August racing period.

“Madamet received me for an interview where I lied to him, as I had never ridden a horse before. It wasn’t easy at first, and I fell off about 30 times during the first week. Luckily, Madamet was at the sales in Newmarket, which gave me a few days to learn how to ride and the staff were a great help. When he came back, I didn’t know whether he was short of staff or a kind man, as he should have sacked me. But instead he ended up passing on his lifetime experience of training racehorses, for which I will always be grateful.

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He added, “Jack Agoille travelling head lad at the time taught me how to saddle a horse. Yann Barberot was Madamet’s apprentice jockey and a couple of years later when I started out, he came to be my principal jockey, winning over 400 races; he is now my neighbour and a brilliant trainer. I have, fortunately, now an equally good stable jockey in Theo Bachelot.”

When Madamet left France to train in Oman in 1989, Wattel was on the move again. “Nicolas Madamet found me an assistant job with Alain de Royer Dupre in Chantilly, who he knew well. It gave me an insight into the classic world of racing with the Aga Khan’s horses and final grounding to start out on my own as a trainer. It was impossible to contemplate training in Chantilly, as running costs were expensive and I didn’t have any owners. So I began with just three horses in Deauville. At the end of my first year of training I had three winners. It wasn’t easy at first and I took whatever horses I could get, but I knew the setup and had the good fortune of having a good team with many of Madamet’s former work riders and stable staff coming to me, which made things easier.”

BELOW: Merci Capucine

| STEPHANE WATTEL |

Ted Mudge

Alison Massin

He added, “I always thought Deauville had a lot of potential and proved a nice challenging experience. Before there was no all-weather track in Deauville, and thanks to considerable investment by France Galop over the years, the training area inside the track has been modernised so that we now have three sand tracks—one for trotting and two for cantering; one 2,200-metre turf track and a canter track equipped with a mobile hedge. These changes have encouraged top trainer Jean Claude Rouget to have 100 horses now trained in Deauville.

“Of course it’s a hobby and pleasure for owners with Deauville being such a nice place to receive them, especially with racing in August most days, plus the sales; and mentally it’s a good break from the routine.”

Apart from on race days, Deauville’s training centre is open from 6 a.m. to noon. His yard has a sense of efficient calm, and his staff know exactly what he had to do, without being told.

Laurence Rago, who was busily cleaning out the stables, has had a lifetime of experience in racing—the last three years with Wattel.

“My husband Patrick Rago was a former jump trainer at Maisons Laffitte for 30 years, and I used to be a work rider at the yard. When he retired three years ago, we moved to Pont l’Eveque not far from Deauville, and I

started working for Stephane Wattel a year later. At 57 I still have three years to go until retirement and have spent my working life in racing. Sure, it’s a tough job cleaning the stables, but the atmosphere with staff here is very good, and that’s important, especially for the horses.”

The jockey, Alison Massin, is one of Wattel’s main work riders. Last season she rode 15 winners and will ride out in the morning for Wattel and go to the races in the afternoon if she has mounts. “It’s just a couple of hours travel to get to the Parisian tracks; I am used to it and love my job.”

Wattel considers his method of training is nothing original. “I have to admit to not doing anything new in training horses with a daily relaxed exercise plan that consists of walking, trotting, cantering and galloping. Every time I tried something new, like fraction timing, it didn’t work. I have some expensive horses bought for €200,000 my charge and would feel guilty if I tried something different and it didn’t work. I sometimes go to the beach for a change of environment but not often.”

He added, “Every year is a new story. I have been lucky to receive horses from English owners who I met casually and through the former trainer, Eric Daniel, a friend.

When he retired, Eric put me in touch with his owners like Adrian Pratt and Lord Clinton, who still have horses with me. A lot of my horses come through agents and ISSUE 69 TRAINERMAGAZINE.COM

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PROFILE

owner/breeders like Haras De la Perelle, Jedburgh Stud, Skymark Farm and Gerard Augustin Normand.”

One of his owners is American Ted Mudge who was brought up on a Pennsylvania dairy farm, has spent over 30 years involved w wiith i racehorses and also has ffiive i horses currently in training at Pimlico.

“I bought the ffiilly i Merci Capucine for €50,000 at the October 2016 Deauvi viille yearling sales, through bloodstock agent Coleman/Stroud w wiith i specifi fiic requirements: ffiind i a French trainer w wiith i patience to develop a young horse. Matt tt Coleman gave me ttw wo w choices: one in Pau and Stephane Watt ttel t in Deauvi viille. It was no contest. Pau was too far away in South West France, and I just loved Deauvi viille—oh my God! With its top p-class racing g, great shop ps,, restaurants— like Santa Lucia that makes fanttastic pizza and the glorious boardwalk beach area. It’s the peerfect combination of Saratoga and Del Mar rolled into o one.”

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| STEPHANE WATTEL |

Merci Capucine (by Falco) won three races for Mudge and earnings of €35,960 before being sold at the end of 2019.

“My w wiife i and I were fortunate to be at ParisLongchamp on September 1st last year for her third w wiin i in a handicap.

French-bred own wner n premium additions to prize money are a big incentive, and I wouldn’t have got involved in France wiiithout them. I bought tw w tw wo other ffiillies i at the A Arrqana r October 2018 sale, Lavadula and Mandanta, who are both wi with i Stephane for €30,000 each.

Mudge added, “I ffiiind the sales more aff ffordable f than in the U.S. and like the no-drugs situation in Europe. I usually come over tw tw wiiice a year w wiith i my w wiife i and stay a week each time and always have dinner w wiith i Stephane and his w wiife—they i y are lovelyy peop ple. I like seeing g his horses train in the morning. It always amazes me how Stephane always knows which horse goes w wiith i who, and he has a very goo od team and a happy stable.”

Conccerning the possible closure of Maisons Laff fffiitte, i Wattel considers France Galop has to make som me tough decision ns—wi with i state-run PMU betting revenu ue falling for the pastt few years.

“Natu urally, it w wiill i be a pity ty if Maisons Laff ffi fiitt ttte finally i has to close, bu ut France Galop needs to make some econ nomies wi with i falling reevenue and give a sign to the French goveernment to be seen making cost savi vings. i The €140m spent reefurbishing Longchaamp should be vi viewed i as a long-term projject. If we hadn’t modernised the racecourse to be used morre eff ffi ficiently i for functtions and concerts outside of racing, the future proffitabi i ility ty of the track would have been in jeopaardy.” o racing is Findiing ways to encourage more people to go a big ch hallenge facing France Galop in tryi ying i to o attract a new yo ounger generation. Their family racecou urse marketiing approach w wiith i activi vities i for children n at Sunday meeting gs, during the past couple of years has seeen increased attendances, likewi wise the Thursday evening wis Spring/Summer meetings at ParisLongchamp wit ith after

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Richard Hughes; “I have used Bronchix Pulmo syrup and Bronchix Pulmo syringes on two individual horses who have unfortunately been categorised as “bleeders”.

The product is simple and easy to use and we have had great success with it. We now would not do without it.”

PROFILE

race music for young office workers are proving popular.

Though Wattel considers it’s still a big hurdle to climb, as racing is not in the French culture compared to England; and the French prefer simpler forms of gambling.

“The difficulty racing faces is both competition from the lottery, which has recently been privatised and young people preferring sports betting, in particular football, with many having no interest in racing at all. “The first Tiercé (now called Quinté) handicap race started in 1954, saw up to seven million people betting on it every Sunday; it now operates daily. It’s the reason why there is more prize money in French racing, but the lottery numbers game image of the Quinté today (Find the first 3,4 or 5) has destroyed racing in France as a sport.”

He added, “There are now more girl jockeys, which is a good thing; and I am waiting for one to break through in the French Championship, or win a top Gp1 race.

This would be a tremendous marketing tool for France Galop. They now have an allowance that’s encouraging more trainers in France to use female jockeys, and Alison Massin has won twice for me this season.”

Each season brings fresh challenges for racehorse trainer Stephane Wattel, and he is well aware of the importance in having a good backup stable team that he can rely on, to help obtain consistent results. Equally important is to maintain France’s attractive prize money system through finding new ways to increase betting revenue and attract greater public interest in racing as a sport.

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H O W G I RTH S H A V E B E E N S C I E N T I F I C A L LY P R O V E N TO HAVE AN IMPACT ON PERFORMANCE Groundbreaking research has revealed the effect girths can have on the locomotion of the galloping racehorse.

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| GIRTH DEVELOPMENT |

Dr. Russell Mackechnie-Guire Dr. Russell Mackechnie-Guire, Shutterstock

enerally, whenever the subject of tack and equipment is discussed, the saddle is always the first, and possibly even the only, consideration. Recent scientific studies have revealed interesting findings relating to girth design and its association with gallop kinematics (movement). These findings could bring significant benefits for trainers—in terms of performance and equine health.

It seems the girth has the potential to be more influential and important than ever been imagined.

Indeed, the girth’s impact on equine locomotion has been reported to be so great that authors of a study suggest the girth and its fit should be considered by a veterinarian when evaluating a horse for poor performance.

Thanks to advances in technology, we have enhanced our understanding of the physiological and

G

biomechanical demands placed on the horse. This evidence-based knowledge is leading to progress in the development of race and exercise tack, allowing trainers to optimise benefits brought about by the design and fit of saddles and girths—benefits which have been quantified using scientifically robust principles and state-of-the-art measuring systems.

Pressure matters

The association between saddle pressures and back discomfort is a topical area within the equine literature.

Studies have reported that a mean saddle pressure of more than 13kPa, or peak pressure of more than 35kPa, has the potential to cause ischemia—compression leading to soft tissue and follicle damage. This can result in the appearance of white hairs, muscle atrophy and skin ulcerations, with the potential to induce discomfort.

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It has always been assumed that girth pressures are at their highest on the midline of the horse’s trunk, at the horse’s sternum (breastbone) where the girth passes over the bone. In a study investigating girth design on sport horse performance, researchers identified repeatable high pressures beneath the girth, but these pressures were actually located behind the elbow, not on the sternum. This also seems logical, given it is the location where girth galls and girth pain may appear.

Adapting technology previously used in saddle-based research, using a pressure mat with 256 individual pressure sensor cells, researchers were able to quantify the precise levels and exact location of actual pressures beneath the girth. For the first time, they were able to demonstrate how the pressure distribution changes during locomotion and show that the pressure peaks are directly associated with the timings of the gait.

Limb kinematics were quantified using a twodimensional motion capture system. The combination of pressure mapping and gait analysis demonstrated that a girth designed to alleviate pressure, particularly in the region behind the elbow, resulted in an improvement in equine locomotion and the horse’s movement symmetry.

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ABOVE: Twodimensional motion capture is used to quantify improvements in gait.

Speed increases pressure

The groundbreaking findings from the sport horse study sparked further investigation into racing thoroughbreds.

It is accepted that high speeds are associated with higher pressures under the saddle and, applying the same principles to a girth, it was speculated that girth pressures may increase with an increase of speed.

In a recent experiment, researchers quantified girth pressures in a group of racehorses that were galloping on a treadmill at a standardised speed wearing commonlyused exercise girths. All girths were of the same length and tension. Just as in the sport horse study, increased girth pressures were identified behind the elbow in the galloping thoroughbred, with pressure peaks occurring when the forelimb opposite to the leading leg was in stance (see photo).

Although the location of pressure was consistent between sport horses and racehorses, the magnitude of the pressures recorded under commonly used race girths was dramatically higher—and far higher than had been reported in any previous saddle study. The girth pressure mat was calibrated to manufacturer’s guidelines at a

| GIRTH DEVELOPMENT |

RIGHT: The area of peak pressure (shown in red) caused by a straight girth is avoided by the cutaway shape of the modified girth.

maximum of 106kPa, but in the racehorse study pressure values for a galloping horse wearing a regular girth peaked out above the highest calibration point. It was not possible to estimate the exact magnitude of girth pressure, but it is worth noting that 106kPa is already three times the peak pressure reported to cause capillary damage and discomfort beneath a saddle.

In the second part of the experiment, the same horses were galloped over-ground in order to quantify gallop kinematics and determine if there was any change when girth pressures were reduced. Data demonstrated that a modified girth, designed to avoid areas of peak pressures, significantly improved the horse’s locomotion at gallop with increased hock flexion, hindlimb protraction and knee flexion.

Space to breathe

Girth pressures are also thought to have an influence on the horse’s capacity to breathe efficiently. One study demonstrated a relationship between increased girth tension and a reduced run-to-fatigue time on a treadmill, indicating that girths can affect the breathing apparatus of the galloping horse.

The more recent girth pressure study also identified a relationship between peak pressures in a normal girth and breathing. This study didn’t quantify respiration rate, but visual observation of the pressure mat data indicated a peak pressure on inhalation. When the horse was wearing the modified girth, the pressure spikes (speculated to be related to the intake of breath) were no longer evident.

It has been reported that the equine rib cage has a limited range of expansion directly where the girth sits.

BELOW: The moment in the stride when peak pressure is seen—the point where the musculature is trapped between the front of girth and back of leg.

THE SHAPE OF THINGS TO COME

The research performed on the treadmill demonstrated that a straight girth created areas of high pressures in excess of 106 kPa behind the elbow, on muscles that are vital for locomotion and respiration (see Essential anatomy).

These high pressures may lead to discomfort and could subsequently compromise performance. It is likely that horses will still perform, but in doing so, they will develop a locomotor compensatory strategy to alleviate discomfort caused by the girth.

Consider this: A horse galloping seven furlongs twice a day will make approximately 363 repeated gallop strides. In a girth that creates high pressures, this will result in 363 peak pressure spikes behind the elbow.

A compensating strategy caused by girth pressure will undoubtedly have a negative effect on gallop performance and efficiency, and ultimately health. Compensation strategies may manifest themselves with horses altering their gallop lead, demonstrating excessive lateral bending away from the leading leg, or stiffening of the thoracolumbar spine. In addition, there may be clinical signs of skin ulcers and bruising, along with muscle pain in and around the girth region.

The development of compensatory locomotor strategies will lead to asymmetric force production. We know these asymmetries have an effect on the horse at walk, trot and canter; and it is likely that these will be amplified when galloping.

Researchers compared a modified girth, designed to avoid areas of peak pressure behind the elbows, to the most commonly-used designs. Pressures were significantly reduced in the modified girth, which incorporates a medical-grade, close-cell layer which is proven to reduce force. A publication is currently under review which demonstrates that this pressure reduction is associated with improved gallop efficiency and performance.

A B C The new modified design in comparison to A: anatomic girth, B: shaped girth, C: straight girth.

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ABOVE: Pressure under a straight girth on a horse galloping on a treadmill was higher than the pressure mat could record.

| GIRTH DEVELOPMENT |

The shape and fit of the modified girth design reduces pressure from the intercostal muscles and therefore does not hinder the rib cage’s naturally occurring expansion.

The girth pressure studies in sport horses and racehorses suggest that muscle function could be highly significant in relation to the time it takes a galloping horse to fatigue.

Muscles need to contract in order to work effectively. If pressure from the girth negatively affects muscle activity, this could result in restricted function and limit the limb’s full range of motion. Subsequently, the muscles may have to work harder and, if they are required to work harder, may fatigue faster.

When scientific evidence shows that commonly used girths are compromising muscle function and restricting breathing during galloping, the advantage of the modified design becomes obvious.

Not so fantastic elastic

One anecdotal belief is that girths modified with elastic inserts offer some form of pressure relief, allowing the horse’s rib cage to expand, therefore enhancing instead of hindering breathing mechanics. However, in the sports horse research, adding an elastic component to the end of the girth did not result in increased locomotion or any alteration in pressure distribution beneath the girth. In contrast, the addition of the elastic decreased the stability of the saddle. Furthermore, new elastic girths can provide up to six inches of stretch and, as a result, are easy to over-tighten. With daily use, the elastic component of the girth weakens over time, losing its elastic properties and stretching. From a safety viewpoint, where elastic girths are being used in race training, routine checks of the stitching and elastic strength are crucial.

Anticipated pain and ulcers

ESSENTIAL ANATOMY

From an anatomical viewpoint, girth design and fit are important in order not to hinder equine locomotion. A girth lies over the junction of various muscles that are involved in posture and forelimb locomotion (see diagram). Muscles require room to contract efficiently, and if they are restricted by girth pressures, contraction may be compromised, which will limit locomotion.

Pectorals and thoracic serratus ventralis The thoracic serratus ventralis is part of the thoracic sling mechanism. Together with the pectorals, it is important in support and elevation of the ribcage.

Rectus abdominis and external abdominal oblique muscles Also situated in the girth region, these muscles are responsible for raising the trunk and inducing flexion of the thorax, lumbar and sacral sections of the spine. Increased flexion of these regions facilitates hindlimb protraction. Therefore, discomfort caused by girth pressures are likely to affect the extension of the hindlimb.

Intercostal muscles These small muscles between the ribs are used in respiration. The external intercostals are responsible for inhalation.

In practice, without the use of sophisticated measuring systems and in the absence of skin ulcers, girth pressures will largely go undetected. However, behaviour when being tacked up, particularly when the girth is being done up, can be indicative of girth-related pain and discomfort.

Similar to humans anticipating pain, horses increase cortisol and gastric acid production, leading to gastric irritation. For horses that already have clinical signs of ulcers, this, combined with excessively high girth pressures in excess of 106kPa behind the elbow at gallop, is likely to lead to increased discomfort. As a result, health and performance are likely to be compromised.

The use of a pressure-relieving girth may be an effective tool when used as part of a multidisciplinary approach in supporting horses undergoing treatment and management of ulcers. If pressure-related discomfort is eliminated, it seems likely that the anticipation of, and response to, pain will be reduced over time.

Further reading European Trainer Magazine, January-March issue (2020) K von Peinen, Equine Veterinary Journal, 42, 650-653 (2010) R Murray, Veterinary Journal, October 198-1 (2013) R Murray, Journal of Equine Veterinary Science, 81 (2019) JR Bowers, Equine Veterinary Journal Suppl., 30, 52–56. (1999) G Roberts-Colborne, Equine and Comparative Exercise Physiology, 3 (2006)

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SU BSTANCE ABUSE

A NEW VIEW OF AN OLD ENEMY Lissa Oliver

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Alamy, Shutterstock, www.focusonracing.com

| SUBSTANCE ABUSE |

“I

have seen so many jockeys wasting on physic go out like the snuff of a candle,” said starter and former jockey Henry Custance, in 1886. In 2016, work-rider and former jockey ‘Franck’ told Rue 89 journalist Clément Guillou, “I saw that if I drank bottles of vodka and took cocaine, I was not hungry and I urinated a lot, so I lost weight. I became addicted at 22 years old, up to three or four grams a night. Then there are the prohibited products, diuretics (Burinex) and laxatives (Contalax).

“My first Burinex, I lost one and a half kilos in 12 hours.

Your heart is beating very fast, you urinate all afternoon. You still want to go, but you have nothing left.” ‘Franck’ took only five milligrams of the most powerful diuretic, prescribed for acute and chronic renal failure. “You feel your belly retract.

I know the Burinex shoot my back. And since you have only been snacking for three days, you are a little tense at the time of the race. The cramps happen quickly.”

If ‘Franck’ “eats like a normal human being” he weighs 68-70 kilos. He needs to be 64 kilos. But it isn’t only about weight. “Among the lads, there are many former jockeys.

The weight has caught up with them, but they remain alcoholics. They work in the yard all morning, and sleep in a nine-square-metre room, because here [in MaisonsLaffitte] real estate is very expensive. Don’t be fooled; if you do this job and you don’t race...it’s a bad luck thing.”

It isn’t just weight. It isn’t just disappointment and loss of a dream. And, as Custance recalled in his 1894 memoir, it wasn’t only the daily glassfuls of the crude and potent laxative concoction known as ‘Archer’s Mixture’ that contributed to Victorian pin-up jockey Fred Archer’s early demise. “Unfavourable public comments made in the press or conveyed to him by trouble-making acquaintances, slander and back-biting such as it is almost inevitable for a man in his position to suffer, racked him mentally.” Today, we call that social media.

Resorting to substance abuse and becoming reliant upon its effect is as old as racing itself. The problems that drive the unfortunate to addiction have never gone away and are not going to, either. And the benefits of that addiction are hard to obtain by any other fashion.

“In racing, the call of the bottle and the threat of the scale go hand in hand. Alcohol dehydrates, so it takes you to the bathroom more easily, and acts as a pain reliever,” Manuel Aubry, work-rider, told Rue 89. “A lot of white wine and champagne because it doesn’t make you fat. My weight is 73 kilos. I went down to 66.5. I was hypoglycemic.”

And there’s another factor as well. Maurice Corcos, director of the adolescent and young adult psychiatry department at the Montsouris Institute in Paris, responded, “Sports practice requires dietary restrictions.

Both are self-reinforcing and addictive. Anorexia, bulimia and sports are addictions. We must add the state of elation linked to sporting success. When all these addictions are no longer enough, there may be the switch to others like alcohol and cocaine.”

If the problems haven’t changed or diminished, our recognition of the symptoms have. As we can already discern from those featured here, what we see only as a problem in itself is nothing more than a symptom of several problems. The industry is tackling the symptoms stringently; but is it equipped to really prevent the problems at source?

That may not be our concern, but of considerable concern to trainers is the repercussion of staff becoming dependent on alcohol or drugs. It doesn’t only affect their timekeeping, work ethic and impact on their colleagues; the risk of cross-contamination is a major issue.

We have already seen in Britain the disqualification of a winner due to a banned substance that was traced back to the hair dye used by an assistant trainer. Last October, a point-to-point winner in Ireland was disqualified for traces of the drug Ecstasy.

Veterinary surgeon Hugh Dillon stated the horse could have been inadvertently exposed to Ecstasy through human contact. The trainer was fined €1,500. Another Irish trainer saw his €1,000 fine waived having taken all reasonable precautions to avoid contamination, as his disqualified horse had ISSUE 69 TRAINERMAGAZINE.COM

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| WELFARE |

apparently tested positive to caffeine from a small amount of coffee spilt on racecourse stable bedding.

In North America, a trainer was held blameless after a horse in his care tested positive for cocaine. The Maryland Racing Commission ruled, “Because of his past history and the drug in question, the groom was requested to deliver a urine sample. He refused to take the drug test but did admit that he was in possession of cocaine the day the horse ran.” As a result, the trainer was not fined, but the horse was disqualified and lost the $13,110 purse. This was in contrast to three previous positive tests for cocaine handled by Maryland stewards, who handed out 15-day suspensions despite evidence of contamination from backstretch employees.

Texas stewards absolved several trainers of any blame when six horses tested positive for the street drug methamphetamine, and human contamination was ruled as a “mitigating circumstance”. The horses were disqualified and lost the purse money earned.

When it comes to taking “all reasonable precautions”, so much is out of the control of a trainer. In addition to loss of the race and prize money, proving cross-contamination involves lengthy and rigorous investigation and testing, by which time the headlines of disqualification and banned substances may already have caused damage. And there isn’t always a simple solution.

As British trainer Dean Ivory discovered, being absolved of guilt is sometimes not enough. His filly was found to have the painkiller Tramadol in her system when she ran unplaced, thanks to a groom urinating in

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SPORTS PRACTICE REQUIRES DIETARY RESTRICTIONS. BOTH ARE SELFREINFORCING AND ADDICTIVE. MAURICE CORCOS

| SUBSTANCE ABUSE |

her box while mucking out. Ivory was fined £750 and commented, “If I put a little sign out in the yard saying ‘Please don’t urinate in the boxes’, owners coming in here will think we’re a right tinpot little firm.”

He instead employed a former policeman to rewrite his health and safety rules to include a rule against urinating in boxes. It was a costly experience all round.

Alcohol and drug dependency has been a recognised aspect of the racing industry for three centuries, so why is it only now becoming such an issue? Partly this is due to the introduction of testing, but partly, too, we are also more aware of the underlying causes and tragic consequences and are less willing to turn a blind eye.

Testing for alcohol and illegal substances in jockeys was first introduced in France in 1997. Jockeys were breathalysed on a British racecourse for the first time in 2003, and in Ireland in 2007. In 2000, Irish jockey Dean Gallagher became the first in France to test positive for cocaine. “Since testing began three years ago, we have never had any cases of jockeys using hard drugs,” said Louis Romanet, Director-General of France-Galop, at the time. “Dominique Boeuf had problems with the police over drugs, but he never tested positive when he was riding.”

Paul-Marie Gadot, France-Galop, says, “France-Galop occasionally catches a few jockeys, often foreigners not necessarily used to French doping controls. Around a thousand riders are tested per year, not counting the breathalysers. It is not to make sure that they do not lose, because the performance is made by the horse, but we want to make sure that the jockey does not put his health in danger, that he has not taken alcohol, is not on antidepressant or has not taken diuretics.”

‘Archer’s Mixture’ and champagne diets are no longer so open that they’re considered de rigueur. Yet they remain, but now, perhaps dangerously, hidden. With stringent testing, the old methods of relief are denied.

This has other consequences.

“I commissioned a survey in racing in 2015, and 57.1% of jockeys in Ireland had symptoms of depression,” stated Dr Adrian McGoldrick, the Irish Turf Club chief medical officer at that time. In the age group of 18-24, the figure rose to 65.2%. Nationally, only 28.4% of 18-24-year-olds suffer from major depression, so jockeys suffer from depression at an alarmingly higher rate than their non-jockey peers.

To whom do trainers owe the greatest duty of care— their horses, their staff, the jockeys they employ, or their owners? What happens when that duty of care gives rise to a conflict of interest?

Increasingly, apprentice jockeys are testing positive, and they should certainly rate high on that spectrum; they are the next generation of professionals coming through. But should we support, sympathise with, or admonish? What about the duty of care we owe our horses and owners?

Cocaine has been widely used by jockeys as a hunger suppressant, with high-profile names throughout Europe testing positive. Following a six-month ban in 2001, German champion Andrasch Starke was quick to acknowledge the importance of support from his trainer, Andreas Schütz. “I think that’s great, and something like

that strengthens. He is with me, and I am also with him.

I have great appreciation for his behaviour towards me.

Because I am aware that it could have been different.

Suddenly I could have stood there without a job.”

Starke was already at the top of his profession, and 10 years after the ban he added the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe to his credits. What if, when testing positive, he had been an apprentice in the first year or two of his career? What if the vital support of his trainer was unforthcoming?

Paul Struthers, CEO of Britain’s Professional Jockeys Association, is in no hurry to see Ireland’s potent fiveyear ban for positive drug tests matched in Britain. “My view is, without condoning the behaviour, people can make a mistake. The penalties need to be a deterrent but don’t need to be so swingeing that their entire life is ruined and, frankly, five years pretty much does that.”

By the close of 2019, the last 15 positive drug tests in Ireland, over a five-year period, were for cocaine, and the Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board (IHRB) saw that as strong enough reason to impose harder punishment.

There were no positive tests for alcohol during that period.

Dr Jennifer Pugh, the IHRB Chief Medical Officer, observed, “There needs to be a greater deterrent and, if we increase the number of tests when we visit a racecourse, it could act as a deterrent. My role is to try and pick up the pieces in the aftermath of a positive test result and, believe me, it is an absolute nightmare for those who are caught.

“Behind it all is the need for education and support to avoid them turning to drugs and alcohol in the first place, in what is an exceptionally high-pressured job.

Also to note that the cocaine epidemic is widespread in society and not just specific to racing.”

The ease of acquiring cocaine is a valid point; it is as easy now to obtain as alcohol and is no longer a drug for the wealthy. Overall, a greater number of cocaine users fall into categories that are described as “just about managing” rather than “middle-class comfort.” In Ireland, it has been estimated that 8% of the population have tried cocaine, rising to 11% among young people. According to Home Office figures in the UK in 2017-2018, 2.6% of people aged 16-59 took powdered cocaine, and 6% of 16-24-year-olds have tried it, despite the fact that fewer young people take drugs in general.

ONE TRAINER COMMENTED IF I PUT A LITTLE SIGN OUT IN THE YARD SAYING ‘PLEASE DON’T URINATE IN THE BOXES’, OWNERS COMING IN HERE WILL THINK WE’RE A RIGHT TINPOT LITTLE FIRM. ISSUE 69 TRAINERMAGAZINE.COM

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| WELFARE |

| SUBSTANCE ABUSE |

MY VIEW IS, WITHOUT CONDONING THE BEHAVIOUR, PEOPLE CAN MAKE A MISTAKE. PAUL STRUTHERS

2017-2018 ANNUAL PREVALENCE OF COCAINE USE (AGES 15-64)

Published by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC)

• England & Wales 2.6% • Spain 2.2% • Scotland 2.2% • USA 2.1% • Australia 2.1% • Uruguay 1.8%

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• Brazil 1.75% • Chile 1.73% • Netherlands 1.6% • Ireland 1.5% • Northern Ireland 1.5% • Bermuda 1.3% • Panama 1.2%

TRAINERMAGAZINE.COM ISSUE 69

• Canada 1.1% • France 1.1% • Israel 1.065% • Costa Rica 1.06% • Luxembourg 1.04% • South Africa 1.02% • Norway 1%

“Cocaine use is going up,” says João Matias of the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction. Hospital admissions for mental health disorders linked to cocaine have almost trebled in the past decade and cocaine-related deaths have increased for the sixth year running, with up to 432 deaths in England and Wales in 2017, compared to 112 in 2011.

Racing staff are not immune to the temptations of general society.

Should the suspension of jockeys caught using cocaine be as lenient as six months or as harsh as five years? Last June, Irish conditional jockey Chris Timmons was permitted to resume riding seven months after having originally been banned for four years for testing positive for cocaine. A caveat ensured his suspension could be reviewed if he engaged with the recommended rehabilitation programme. Similarly, apprentice Damian Melia was banned for four years but could reapply for his licence after nine months, while amateur rider Conor Murphy was banned for five years and could reapply after 18 months. Cian Cullinan and David Simmonson, banned for four years and two years respectively, may both reapply to have their licences reinstated—subject to conditions—one year after the date they returned the positive tests.

Any ban is a deterrent, so when that deterrent fails, is punishment the answer? The caveat of leniency, where engaging with support and rehabilitation, suggests otherwise. And if 300 years of history is anything to go by, testing alone will not make the problem disappear.

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BO N A P P ÉT I T !

Encouraging and maintaining appetite throughout a season can become a serious challenge. The best planned feeding program in the world is of no use if the horse simply does not eat as required to sustain performance.

There are multiple factors that can lead to poor appetite for horses in training – some relating to health, some relating to physical properties of the feed or forage, along with behavioural considerations.

Catherine Rudenko

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Alamy, Shutterstock, Catherine Rudenko

| KEEP THE APPETITE UP TO SUSTAIN PERFORM ANCE |

What is a normal appetite?

Before we can fairly state a particular horse has a poor appetite, we must firstly have an idea of what a normal appetite range is. The horse has a given capacity within its digestive tract and an appetite appropriate to this.

Horses will typically consume 2-3% of their body weight each day on a dry matter basis – in other words not accounting for fluid intake or any moisture found in the forages. This equates to 10-15kg (or 22-33lbs) per day for a 500kg-weight racehorse. As fitness increases, it is normal for appetite to reduce, and most horses will eat closer to 2% of their body weight.

The energy requirement of a horse in training is such that we are dependent on a large amount of grain-based ‘hard feeds,’ which for the majority form 7-9kg of the diet each day. With a potential appetite of 10-15kg we are, for some individuals, running close to their likely appetite limit.

The most immediate effect of a reduction in appetite is the reduction in energy intake. Horses require a large amount of calories, typically 26,000 to 34,000 cal per day when in full training. Comparatively, an average active human will require only 3,000 cal per day. Just one bowl of a racing feed can contain 4,500 cal, and so feed leavers that regularly leave a half or quarter of a bowl at each meal time really can be missing out. Forage is equally a source of calories, and a reduction of intake also affects total calorie intake.

Physical form of feed and forage

The physical form of the bucket feed can affect feed intake due to simple time constraints. Morning and lunch time feeds are more common times at which to find feed left behind.

Different feed materials have different rates of intake – due to the amount of chewing required – when fed at the same weight. To give an example, 1kg of oats will take 850 chews and only 10 minutes to consume in comparison with 1kg of forage taking up to 4,500 chews and 40 minutes to consume.

Meals that require a high amount of chewing – whilst beneficial from the point of view of saliva production (the stomach’s natural acid buffer – can result in feed ‘refusal’ as there is simply too much time required. Cubes are often eaten more easily as they are dense, providing less volume than a lighter, ‘fluffier’ coarse mix ration. Inclusion of chaff in the meal also slows intake, which can be beneficial, but not for all horses. Any horse noted as a regular feed leaver ideally needs smaller meals with less chewing time. Keeping feed and forage separate can make a significant difference.

The choice of forage is important for appetite. Haylage is more readily consumed, and horses will voluntarily eat a greater amount. The study below compares multiple forage sources for stabled horses.

ABOVE: Grain-based feeds are an important requirement for a horse in training.

Another factor relating to forages is the level of NDF present. NDF (neutral detergent fibre) is a lab measure for forage cell wall content – looking at the level of lignin, cellulose and hemi-cellulose. As a grass matures, the level of NDF changes. The amount a horse will voluntarily consume is directly related to the amount of NDF present.

CHANGES IN GRASS PROTEIN AND FIBRE (NDF)

TABLES RIGHT: Adapted from Edouard et al 2008(2).

TABLE BELOW: Adapted from Ellis 2010(1).

GRASS

PROTEIN %

NDF %

Pre-head

17

<55

Early head

12 -17

56-61

Head

8 -12

60-65

Post-head

<8

>65

RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN NDF AND VOLUNTARY INTAKE DIET

NDF MEAN %

INTAKE GDM/ KG LW

Fresh forage

57.3

18.8

Grass hay

63.7

16.6

Alfalfa hay

51.7

19.6

SOURCE OF FORAGE DRY MATTER GIVEN WHILST STABLED CONTENT OF ON A FREE CHOICE BASIS FORAGES GIVEN

AVERAGE KILOGRAMS OF FRESH WEIGHT EATEN BY 500KG HORSE

% OF HORSE’S BODY WEIGHT ON A DRY MATTER (DM) BASIS

Freshly cut grasses

14-20%

73

2.2

Haylage

55-65%

23

2.8

Hay

80-85%

11

1.9

Straw

90% +

7

1.3

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| KEEP THE APPETITE UP TO SUSTAIN PERFORM ANCE |

Analysing forage for NDF, along with ADF, the measuree relating to digestibility of the plant, is an important practicce that can help identify if the forage is likely to be well receiveed.

Alfalfa is normally lower in NDF and can form a large part rt of the daily forage provision for any horse with a limited appetite. As alfalfa is higher in protein â&#x20AC;&#x201C; should it become a dominant form of daily fibre â&#x20AC;&#x201C; then a lower protein racing feed is advisable. Racing feeds now range from 10% up to 15% protein, and so finding a suitable balance is easily done.

B vitamins

B vitamins are normally present in good quantity in foragees, and the horse itself is able to synthesise B vitamins in the hindgut. Between these sources a true deficiency rarely exists. Horses with poor appetite are often supplemented with B12 amongst other B vitamins. Vitamin B12 is a cofactor for two enzymes involved in synthesis of DNA and metabolism of carbohydrates and fats. Human studies where a B12 deficiency exists have shown an improvement in appetite when subjects were given a daily dose of B12(3).

As racehorses are typically limited in terms of forage intake and their hindgut environment is frequently challenged, through nutritional and physiological stresses, it is reasonable to consider that the racehorse, whilst not deficient, may be running on a lower profile. Anecdotal evidence in horses suggests B12 supplementation positively affects appetite as seen in humans.

Another area of interest around B vitamin use is depression. Horses can suffer from depression and in much the same way as in the human form, this can affect appetite.

French researchers investigated the behaviour of depressed horses, those determined as non-reactive or with low reaction to stimuli, against their response to sweetened and novelflavoured foods. The depressed horses consumed significantly less than normal horses(4). There has been much interest in B vitamins for humans with depression as a low level of B vitamins is linked with depressive behaviour(5). Using a B vitamin supplement may also be beneficial to horses.

ABOVE: Normal pH levels of the equine stomach.

Digestive health

Gastric ulceration is commonly associated with changes in appetite(6). Picky eaters may be responding to the physical effect of feed digestion in the stomach. Racing feeds by design contain a significant amount of starch relative to forages, which horses are designed to consume. Starch fermentation in the stomach produces VFAs (volatile fatty acids), which can damage the stomach lining if the pH level of the upper stomach is lower than normal causing discomfort(7). The ability of the upper stomach to remain within normal parameters relates to forage intake. Normal range is pH 5-7, however with limited forage intake the pH can lower to 4. Once below this level, the squamous tissue may ulcerate for a variety of reasons including VFA production at the time of feeding(8).

Normal pH levels of the equine stomach

The incidence level of ulceration in racehorses is high, with reports of 93% of horses having presence of ulcers(9).

Not every individual shows the classical symptoms of ulcers but for any horses with poor appetite scoping for ulcers is recommended. The risk factor for development of ulcers is related to the amount of time spent in training, with i h every week k spen nt increasiing riisk k 1.7 7 folld(10). A horse wi w wiith i a change in appeetite as the season progressess may not just be the result of increasing fitness i but an indicator of an ulcer developing g.

Feed flavouring

The use of flavouring l in feed is another consideratio on for sparking appetite. Al Alth l hough traditionally mint is ussed as an addition to feed, moree recent research into a broad range

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| NUTRITION |

| KEEP THE APPETITE UP TO SUSTAIN PERFORM ANCE |

of flavours has revealed that horses find other flavours more appetising. In order of preference, horse selectively consumed a fenugreek-flavoured cereal by-product first followed by banana, cherry, rosemary, cumin and carrot before reaching peppermint. When added to mineral pellets, the most common item to be left at the bottom of a feed pot when using a coarse mix for racehorses, the inclusions of fenugreek and banana resulted in pellets being more readily consumed(11). Including a novel flavour may be enough to encourage interest in horses that are apparently off their feed for no reason.

Assessment and recommendations for horses with poor appetite

There are multiple factors that influence appetite, and improving appetite will normally require taking more than one approach to get the best result.

• Firstly, it is important to determine if gastric ulceration is a factor and start a course of the appropriate treatment.

• Provide forage ideally on a free-choice basis to reduce the risk of prolonged periods without forage consumption, which result in a lower stomach pH.

References 1. Ellis, A.D., 2010. Biological basis of behaviour in relation to nutrition and feed intake in horses.

In A.D. Ellis, A.C.Longland, M.Coenen & N.Miraglia, ed. The impact of nutrition on the health and welfare of horses. The Netherlands: Wageningen Academic Publishers, 53-74 2. Edouard, N. Fleurance, g. Martin-rosset, W. Duncan, P. Dulphy, J.P. Grange, S. Baumont, R. Dubroeucq, H. Perez-Barberia, F.J. Gordon, I.J. (2008). Voluntary intake and digestibility in horses: effect of forage quality with emphasis on individual variability. Animal 10 (2):1526-1533 3. Stahlberg, K.G. (1967) Studies on methyl-B12 in man. Scandinavian Journal of Haematology (1) 1-99 4. Furiex, C. Beaulieu, C. Argaud, S. Rochais, C. Quinton, M. Henry, S. Hausberger, M. Mason, G.

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• If forage intake seems poor, have the forage analysed for

NDF and ADF; and if needed, consider addition of more digestible fibre to the diet such as alfalfa.

• Give as many small meals as is practical, and consider use of low to moderate starch feeds, those with a starch profile of 10-18%.

• Where horses struggle to finish their bucket feed in time with the inclusion of chaff, consider providing a separate ‘fibre bucket’ consisting of alfalfa and soaked beet pulp in the stable. Both these fibres are highly digestible and have a good energy value, and when provided independently from the ‘hard feed,’ it can be grazed slowly.

• Consider the inclusion of calorie-dense dried fat supplements.

Fats contain more calories than starch found within cereals; and so their inclusion, which is typically a low rate of 500g1kg per day, is often an easy way to increase total calories and so increase energy intake where appetite is limited.

• Supplement with a short course of a B vitamin complex, and monitor for any changes in appetence.

• Include one of the identified flavours to create a novel and more interesting feed.

• Access to pasture even for short periods, which enables natural grazing, can have positive effects on behaviour and appetite.

(2015) Investigating anhedonia in a nonconventional species: Do some riding horses Equus caballus display symptoms of depression?

Applied Animal Behaviour Science (162) 26-36 5. Mitchell, E.S. Conus, N. Kaput, J. (2014) B vitamin polymorphisms and behaviour: Evidence of associations with neurodevelopment, depression, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and cognitive decline. Neuroscience & Behavioural Reviews (47)307-320 6. Vatistas, N.J. SnydeR, J.R. Carlson, G. Johnson, B. Arthus, R.M. Thurmond, M. Zhou, H. Lloyd, K.L.K. (2010) Cross-sectional study of gastric ulcers of the squamous mucosa in Thoroughbred racehorses. Equine Veterinary Journal (31) 29, 34-39 7. Nadeau et al cited in National Research Council

(2207) Nutrient Requirements of Horses (6th Ed).

Washington DC: National Academic Press 8. Andrews et al cited 2006, Widenhouse et al 2002 cited in Geor, J. Harris, P. Coenen, M. (2013) Equine Applied and Clinical Nutrition. China: Elsevier 9. Murray et al 1996 cited in lutherson, N. HounIelsen, K. Harris, P. Parkin, T.D.H. (2009) Risk factors associated with equine gastric ulcers syndrome (EGUS) in 201 horses in Denmark.

Equine Veterinary Journal, 41 (7), 625-630.

10. Murray, unpublished data, cited in Geor, J. Harris, P. Coenen, M. (2013) Equine Applied and Clinical Nutrition. China: Elsevier 11. Goodwin, D. Davidson, H.P.B. Harris, P. (2005) Selection and appetence of flavours in concentrate diets for stabled horses. Applied Animal Behaviour Science (95) 3-4,223-232

Outstanding Results #FedonTopSpec

Lady Buttons, winning the Yorkshire Rose Mares’ Hurdle at Doncaster races, for the second year running, trained by Philip Kirby, ridden by Sean Quinlan and owned by Jayne and Keith Sivills.

Photograph by SB Photos

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Philip Kirby

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TRAINERMAGAZINE.COM ISSUE 69

| CAPTIVATING OWNERS OF THE FUTURE |

C A PTIVATIN G TH E N E X T G EN E RAT I ON OF RA CEHO RSE OWN ER S Lissa Oliver

Alamy, Eclipse Sportswire, Shutterstock

popular music festival, soon approaching its 60th year, recently generated a great deal of upset on social media with regard to the line-up. “I have been going since it started, and I have never heard of any of these bands!” said many. “Worst line-up ever! It has been getting steadily worse every year!” complained others. “Oh, wow! Brilliant line-up!” said all of the younger ones. One of them even had the sense to comment, “What were 50-yearolds saying about your favourite bands when you first started going there in 1961?”

There is a generation gap; it exists.

Times change. The offside rule in football has changed many times, yet the game remains the same. So it is for horse racing; the sport itself does nothing to engender a rift between young and old.

The problem seems to be in getting young people through the gates and discovering for themselves that this is something they can become passionate about. It is by no means a new problem—horse racing has historically been dominated by the over-40s audience, and that has been a perpetual worry for the industry.

According to Nielsen (www.nielsen. com) data, only golf has an older average

A

television audience age, at 64, than horse racing. Data collected periodically shows an increase in the average viewing age of televised horse racing from 51 in 2000 to 63 in 2016—the most recent data collected. In 2016, 5% of horse racing’s audience was under 18, falling from 10% in 2000 and 7% in 2006.

Horse racing isn’t unique in this loss of younger viewers. Those who watched wrestling at the height of its television popularity still do—the average age of a television viewer of professional wrestling has climbed by 21 years since 2006 to the age of 54—the biggest age increase of any sport viewed on television.

Jesse Collings of Wrestling Inc., observes, “For WWE, the main issue for the company is that they have failed greatly to create new fans over the last two decades. Chances are if you are a WWE fan right now, you have probably been watching WWE for over 20 years.

From 1997 to 2001, the average age of a WWE viewer was 23 years old—30 years younger than the current viewer today. The promotion was hot and creating new fans on a weekly basis, with a lot of young people that were getting into wrestling for the first time.

ISSUE 69 TRAINERMAGAZINE.COM

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| OWNERSHIP |

Maybe they stopped when the top stars of that era retired, or they had kids, or they just got burned out by the product.”

As horse racing is currently at that same ‘hot’ promotion stage, perhaps this should stand as a future warning. It’s retention, not attraction, that should be the central focus.

The Nielsen study of 25 televised sports showed that all but one have seen the average age of their viewers increase during the past decade, as the younger generation gravitate toward digital options. This doesn’t mean they no longer watch the sports that interest them, but it does mean we can no longer rely on television viewing figures to identify our market and popularity. Attendances, therefore, become increasingly important.

This is where there is brighter news for horse racing. In Britain, the Racecourse Association (RCA) reports that the British racing crowd is younger than the overall sporting average, based on advanced ticket purchases. This has been driven by engagement with the millennial generation who are responsible for 44% of British horse racing attendees, even though millennials make up just 21% of the population.

“Engaging audiences at an early stage is crucial for the future of racing and presents a huge opportunity for us over the next 10-15 years as millennials

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continue to take a larger share of the leisure pound,” reflects Stephen Atkin, RCA Chief Executive. “We hope they will go on to become lifelong followers and participate more in the sport through attending, betting and even ownership or working in racing.”

Great British Racing (GBR) has invested heavily in growing racing’s younger fanbase, promoting free admission for under-18s, and during the six weeks of the summer school holidays there was a 1.15% increase in attendance at family fixtures, tripling the average growth. British attendances have increased by 5% and, importantly, retention rates have increased by 2%.

GREAT BRITISH RACING (GBR) HAS INVESTED HEAVILY IN GROWING RACING’S YOUNGER FANBASE.

This is in direct variance to France, where attendances fell by 25% from 2000, before drastic marketing measures were taken in 2017. “The teaching of horse racing from parents to children is lost.

There is a whole generation who do not come to the racetrack and who said to themselves it is an insider’s environment; it is not made for us,” Grégory Garnier, head of the marketing department at Le Trot, recently told Le Figaro, that evening racing, aimed at young people, has worked best with turnover increased by 30%. The Thursday evening meetings at ParisLongchamp, begun in May 2018, attract 8,500 spectators aged 20-30.

By combining forces, the PMU, Le Trot, France-Galop, the National Horse Racing Federation and the Equidia group developed the “EpiqE Series” specifically to attract Generation Y. “We must conquer the generation of 25-45-year-olds,” says Édouard de Rothschild, president of France-Galop.

The key lies in understanding the target audience. What is Generation Y, and who are millennials?

• “Boomers” (aged 50- 67) typically like activities that are more controlled and structured, they value peer competition and embrace a team-based approach.

• “Generation X” (aged 35-50) like to

| CAPTIVATING OWNERS OF THE FUTURE |

ask questions and challenge concepts; they like to know exactly what is being offered and have clear goals. They prefer managing their own time and solving their own problems and like getting feedback to adapt to new situations. They are flexible and gender equal.

• “Generation Y” (aged 13-27) are also known as millennials and are described as the most educated, entertained and materially-endowed generation in history.

They have been raised in a self-educated era and are more interested in the social aspects of sports. They like to learn new things in an environment that is engaging, flexible and fun; and they want to experience new things in an environment where their ideas and opinions are heard.

A Turnkey Sports and Entertainment survey, now Marketcast (www.marketcast. com), conducted in 2016 in North America noted that the biggest deterrent to drawing Generation Y to horse racing was lack of personalities—a view shared by 40% of those surveyed. Contrary to what some in racing suggest, the short duration of the main event was only cited by 7%, and the gambling aspect was a concern of just 2%. The welfare of animals was highlighted by 17%.

This year, a survey by Marketcast Kids found that children, a group we will be

looking to attract as our customers in the next decade, hold very strong views on social issues—animal rights and wildlife protection figuring high on their list of priority, above world peace, provision for the poor and climate change. Ninetythree percent of children surveyed throughout North and South America, Europe and Asia believe companies have a responsibility to directly support good causes with money, time and publicity.

This is already an idea acted upon

by Britain’s “Racing Together” scheme, encouraging racecourses to engage with their local community. Racing Together and the Racecourse Association (RCA) raised over £2.2m through racecourse charitable activity during 2019 for over 250 charities, and racecourse team members volunteered more than 3,100 hours to community projects. Free curriculum-based school trips were hosted for 15,011 students, and all of this received media publicity, particularly during televised racing.

This side of the public face of racing is vital, as young people feel limited by their own means and want companies to help them take action. Of those surveyed, 87% believe they can create change, and they provided a clear priority list of what companies can do to support youth social activism: 1. Make products they can use to help make a difference.

2. Give them a free space to meet and organise.

3. Publicise events that kids and teens are running, 4. Organise after-school clubs or online groups to connect them with others who care about their cause.

5. Run events or fairs.

Their number one priority may not apply to our industry, but we can meet the other needs of today’s children, who are not far removed from the Generation Y we are trying to attract. A designated space at the racecourse and online group interaction offers an engagement with horse racing they themselves can run and control and can be readily supplied by racecourses, already proven in Asia.

Given that golf is the only sport attracting an older viewing audience than horse racing, it might be helpful to look at how that sector is promoting itself to Generation Y. “Get into Golf ” is a programme designed not only to support golf clubs in recruiting new members and increasing membership figures and revenue, but to make golf more accessible to a wider audience. To achieve this, it focuses on recruitment, advertising and communication, both internal and external.

Its taster sessions and awareness days have been particularly successful, ISSUE 69 TRAINERMAGAZINE.COM

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| OWNERSHIP |

combining lessons with a PGA professional with volunteer activities to help integrate participants into the golf club. In 2019 alone, golf clubs running “Get into Golf ” enjoyed an average conversion rate from the programme into membership of 66%.

Similarly, tennis clubs throughout Europe are also adopting a direct approach, most advertising weekly pizza party social evenings for under-21s and designating specific teen social days once a week or bi-weekly, all of which is advertised on social media, and where group pages are deployed to great effect.

The British Horseracing Authority (BHA) “Diversity and Inclusion Report 2018” identifies the need to bring horses and sporting action closer to racegoers and cites the Hong Kong Jockey Club as a good example, where virtual reality technology allows racing fans to create their own horse and set of colours and compete in their own race, in designated ‘technology zones’.

The Report also explores opportunities to collaborate with other equestrian organisations and inner-city charities and highlights initiatives such as “Take The Reins”, where horse racing is harnessed to inspire personal and social change and be

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Michael Grassick

IT’S LUDICROUS TO TURN AWAY YOUNG PEOPLE BECAUSE THEY COME RACING ON THEIR OWN.

a force for social good in disadvantaged communities. The sport is used to promote its values and excitement to new and underrepresented communities by improving access, understanding and involvement.

The feasibility of establishing an inner-city racing academy as a focal point for the next generation is also being explored.

The “Racing To School” initiative, showcasing the sport and career opportunities in schools, has been broadened to include trips to training centres and the introduction of ‘family follow up week’ during school holidays.

France-Galop and Great British Racing already promote the successful “Under 18s Race Free”, an incentive also adopted

by Irish racecourses, but CEO of the Irish Racehorse Trainers Association, Michael Grassick, identifies a serious issue.

“Something that really needs to be addressed by HRI (Horse Racing Ireland) is the rule that under-18s must be accompanied by an adult,” he points out.

“It’s ludicrous to turn away young people because they come racing on their own, and it needs to be sorted out at once. It’s a very serious issue. We were all as children taken racing by our parents, and we went racing by ourselves on days off from school. We developed our love of racing as children, so for the current young generation to be told they have to be accompanied by an adult, because of the betting and alcohol at races, is a joke. The barman at the races should be like any barman everywhere else and not serve anyone without age ID, and the same for betting. Stopping them at the gate is ludicrous, and we’re seeing it happening.”

Long-term engagement with the new racegoer is a concern to Grassick, who would like to see a more definite outcome of attracting newcomers through the gates transferring to future ownership. “I agree that some money should be spent on attracting the next generation to the sport, but it would be more worthwhile for trainers if far more were spent on encouraging owner-breeders. They were the original owners, and they are becoming increasingly fewer. A breeder will always have one or two horses left over from the sales, and they should be encouraged to put them in training.

“Spending money on the first-time owner is a risk; if they’re not immediately successful, they could be gone, whereas the owner-breeder will have a horse every year. If you look at the record of syndicates, the statistics will show they don’t often last for long. Breeders will always have the horses.”

| CAPTIVATING OWNERS OF THE FUTURE |

Pat Keogh

Pat Keogh, former CEO of Leopardstown racecourse and now filling the same role at the Curragh, believes the highly-successful student race days and live music evenings held at Leopardstown are helping retain the fanbase.

“Our student race days are very successful and they are definitely coming back for subsequent race days. Student race days have to be properly managed and you have to have the facilities for them. While we were learning, it was a risk, but we’ve got better and the students are definitely taking more of an interest in the racing.

“The music evenings are mid-week as many people leave Dublin on the weekends during the summer. These are very popular with companies as either staff events or to entertain clients. The overall atmosphere of the evening appeals, and they have racing at the core. This isn’t always the case in Britain where the sport can be overpowered by the music.

“We see it as an opportunity to promote racing to a wider audience. We monitor the numbers who come for the music, and we’re pleased that generally they arrive early and are there for the racing. We also know that they subsequently return for non-music race days, so having experienced racing they want to come back. We have an average of 5,000 at each of the Bulmers Live at Leopardstown evenings, and many of them are witnessing racing for the first time. If we didn’t have the music, you could very conservatively take 25% off our attendance figures for those meetings.”

Racecourses elsewhere in the world have had big success attracting younger customers—Hong Kong being a prime example. The Hong Kong Jockey Club employed a strategy of making its Happy

Valley racetrack more like a nightclub, with dedicated social areas for young people and a dining area with an iPad race simulator facility. Customers are given an iPad on entering the area and hand it back when they leave. As well as live music, a beer garden sells cheap beer in a festivallike atmosphere. Betting increased, and 50% of racegoers are younger than 35.

America’s Best Racing (ABR) has a millennial outreach department, inviting ‘social media influencers’ to experience a day’s racing. They typically have over 400,000 followers on social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. ABR also posts videos on YouTube of ‘young and beautiful people’ enjoying a day at the races.

Similarly, New York Racing Association has adopted ‘guerrilla marketing’ tactics, inviting college students from the schools close to Belmont Park and adding sweeteners such as a $1,000 prize to the school that sends the most students to the track. As a result, attendance has increased by over 25%, and a day at the races has become a social event—young people using the opportunity to dress up, wear hats and post ‘selfies’ on social media.

In Australia, the Australian Turf Club (ATC) promotes “#theraces” to racegoers to add to their social media photos. On Instagram, the hashtag has been used on over 63,500 posts; and this ability to advertise racing on social media platforms has become a marketing bonus to the industry.

While only 20% of Australian millennials say they follow the jockeys, trainers and horses, racecourses have become a socialite paradise during the spring and autumn festivals, where millennials make up a large percentage

STUDENT RACE DAYS HAVE TO BE PROPERLY MANAGED AND YOU HAVE TO HAVE THE FACILITIES FOR THEM. of the crowd. “Fashions on the Field” has played a major part, and racing takes second place behind the social aspect.

In an ATC survey, 88% of young people claim to attend the races for social purposes rather than to watch the sport itself. When it comes to betting, 46% of millennials pick a horse based on its name and 42% go by its form, revealing yet another clue about engagement and how to retain this audience for the long term.

The earlier warning from the wrestling world once again rears its head.

Racing appears to be doing well at step one in attracting Generation Y, but step two of retaining them and enticing them into ownership still lies ahead. They have been labelled as materialistic, but our experience is that they enjoy the glamour and socialising of the racecourse; and we are told they like to be in control of their activities.

Handled correctly, Generation Y has all the indication of becoming the owners and owner-breeders our future depends upon.

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P E T: T H E L AT E S T A D V A N C E I N

EQUINE IMAGING Mathieu Spriet, Associate Professor, University of California, Davis

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Lisa Beattie, Mathieu Spriet, Eclipse Sportswire

S

anta Anita Park, the iconic Southern California racetrack, currently under public and political pressure due to a high number of horse fatalities during the 2019 season, announced in December 2019 the installation of a PET scanner specifically designed to image horse legs. It is hoped that this one-of-a-kind scanner will provide information about bone changes

in racehorses to help prevent catastrophic breakdowns.

What is PET?

PET stands for positron emission tomography. Although this advanced form of imaging only recently became available for horses, the principles behind PET imaging have been commonly used at racetracks for many years. PET is a nuclear medicine imaging technique, similar to

scintigraphy, which is more commonly known as “bone scan”. For nuclear imaging techniques, a small dose of radioactive tracer is injected to the horse, and the location of the tracer is identified with a camera in order to create an image. The tracers used for racehorse imaging are molecules that will attach to sites on high bone turnover, which typically occurs in areas of bone subject to high stress. Both scintigraphic and PET scans detect “hot spots” that ISSUE 69 TRAINERMAGAZINE.COM

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FIG 1

indicate—although a conventional X-ray might not show anything abnormal in a bone—there are microscopic changes that may develop into more severe injuries.

Development of PET in California

The big innovation with the PET scan is that it provides 3D information, whereas the traditional bone scan only acquires 2D images. The PET scan also has a higher spatial resolution, which means it is able to detect smaller changes and provide a better localisation of the abnormal sites.

PET’s technological challenge is that to acquire the 3D data in horses, it is necessary to use a ring of detectors that fully encircles the leg.

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Figure 1: The first equine PET was performed in 2015 at the University of California Davis on a research horse laid down with anesthesia. The scanner used was a PET prototype designed for the human brain (piPET, Brain-Biosciences Inc., Rockville, MD, USA).

The first ever equine PET scan was performed at the School of Veterinary Medicine at the University of California in 2015. At the time, a scanner designed to image the human brain was used (PiPET, Brain-Biosciences, Inc.). This scanner consists of a horizontal cylinder with an opening of 22cm in diameter. Although the dimensions are convenient to image

the horse leg, the configuration required the horse be anesthetised in order to fit the equipment around the limb.

The initial studies performed on anesthetised horses with the original scanner demonstrated the value of the technique. A first study, published in Equine Veterinary Journal, demonstrated that PET showed damage in the equine navicular bone when all other imaging techniques, including bone scan, MRI and CT did not recognise any abnormality.

A pilot study looking at the racehorse fetlock, also published in Equine Veterinary Journal, showed that PET detects hot spots in areas known to be involved in catastrophic fractures.

This confirmed the value of PET for racehorse imaging, but the requirement for anesthesia remained a major barrier to introducing the technology at the racetrack. To overcome this, LONGMILE Veterinary Imaging, a division of BrainBiosciences Inc., in collaboration with the University of California Davis, designed a scanner which could image standing horses. To do this, the technology had to be adapted so that the ring of detectors could be opened and positioned around the limb.

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FIG 2

With the support from the Grayson Jockey Club Research Foundation, the Southern California Equine Foundation and the Stronach Group, this unique scanner became a reality and, after the completion of an initial validation study in Davis, the scanner was installed at Santa Anita Park in December 2019.

PET at the racetrack

The new PET scanner has been used to image the equine limb from the foot to the knee. The current main focus at the racetrack is fetlock imaging, as the majority of catastrophic breakdown in racehorses affects this area. The UC Davis pilot study highlighted the value of PET for detecting abnormalities in the proximal sesamoid bones—the two small bones at the back of the cannon bone—that are commonly involved in catastrophic fractures. Previous necropsy research on horses which suffered breakdowns has shown that changes can be present in the bones prior to the development of major injuries. The goal of the Californian PET project is to detect these warning signs in order to avoid training and racing horses at high risk for catastrophic breakdown.

Figure 2: These are images from the first horse image with PET. From left to right, PET, CT, MRI and bone scan. The top row shows the left front foot that has a severe navicular bone injury. This is shown by the yellow area on the PET image and abnormalities are also seen with CT, MRI and bone scan. The bottom row is the right front foot from the same horse; the PET shows a small yellow area that indicates that the navicular bone is also abnormal. The other imaging techniques however did not recognize any abnormalities.

FIG 3

Alternative imaging techniques

Other imaging techniques are available for examining equine bone. Scintigraphic bone scans are doing an excellent job at detecting stress fractures of the humerus or tibia, and this has helped markedly decrease catastrophic injuries in these areas.

Bone scan is also used for fetlocks; but “hot fetlocks” are common on bone scan, and the lower resolution 2D images often do not allow to truly determine whether horses are at high risk of fractures or have normal bone adaptation to training.

MRI is used for fetlock imaging too, and MRI scanners designed for imaging standing horses have been

Figure 3: The two images on the left are bone scan images from a 4-year-old thoroughbred racehorse. The images on the right are 3D projection of PET images of the same fetlock.

The bone scan revealed an abnormality at the bottom of the cannon bone. The PET scan confirmed this abnormality and helped better localize it. In addition, several other abnormalities were found on the PET scan in the sesamoid bones.

FIG 4

available for over 15 years. Several large racing centers are equipped with such scanners, and MRI excels in particular at detecting changes in the cannon bone that precede condylar fractures. MRI can detect areas of bone densification, or even accumulation of fluid in the bone, typically indicative of microtrauma that can weaken the bone.

Computed tomography (CT) has also recently been used for standing imaging of the fetlock. At the moment, there are a few centers equipped with a CT scanner allowing standing fetlock imaging, but they are only available at, for example, New Bolton Center, Pennsylvania - USA, and the University of Melbourne, Australia. CT uses X-rays to create 3D images. Similar to MRI, CT can detect areas of bone densification or areas of bone loss.

PET’s advantages

Figure 4: The MILE-PET scanner (LONGMILE Veterinary Imaging, Rockville, MD, USA) is the first PET scanner specifically designed to image standing horses. An openable ring of detectors allows easy positioning and safe scanning. The image on the right shows PET imaging of the fetlock at the Santa Anita Racetrack.

The big advantage of PET is what is called “sensitivity”—the ability to detect early and subtle findings. This is because PET ISSUE 69 TRAINERMAGAZINE.COM

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FIG 5

detects changes at the molecular level before structural changes have occurred.

MRI and CT rely on changes in the density and shape of the structures they are imaging; i.e., structural change must have occurred before these techniques can identify that the bone is abnormal. MRI and CT might miss early information that a PET scan can detect; but they provide complementary information, and these techniques will be important to further characterise abnormalities found on PET. For these reasons, PET and MRI or CT can be combined: a PET image is “fused” on an MRI or a CT, combining the sensitivity of PET with the anatomical detail of the other imaging tool.

As PET is a newly available modality at the racetrack, there is still a lot to learn.

The goal of the first year at Santa Anita is to image as many horses as possible and compare with the PET information with bone scan or MRI information. The pilot study at Davis and the initial cases at Santa Anita tend to show that it is normal to see some bone activity in specific areas of the fetlock, e.g., the palmar condyles; but the presence of hot spots in other areas, for example in the middle of the sesamoid bones, is an abnormal finding that could be an indicator of higher risk of fracture.

Other roles for PET

In addition to its use in racehorses, PET has been used in over a 100 sport horses at UC Davis in the last three years. All these scans have been performed with horses under anesthesia and combined to a CT. The main reason to perform a PET scan is either when other imaging modalities do not find a reason to explain a lameness or to better understand changes seen with other modalities. PET is a “functional” technique; this means that a hot spot indicates an area where an injury is active. MRI can meet difficulties distinguishing between scar tissue and active injury, but PET is the ideal modality for this. The majority of the work done

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Figure 5: MRI and PET images of a racehorse fetlock (from left to right: MRI, fused PET/MRI and PET). The combination of the two techniques maximise the information available gaining anatomical detail from the MRI and detection of early changes from PET.

in sport horses has used the same bone tracer as in racehorses. The most common injuries found with this tracer in sport horses result in navicular disease and early arthritis (joint disease).

PET is not restricted to imaging; with an alternative tracer, it can be used to look at injuries in the soft tissues. This is something that is not possible with scintigraphy, and the soft tissue tracer has been used successfully to identify tendon injuries— distinguishing between active and inactive tendon lesions. Another important area of interest where the soft tissue tracer has been used is for the assessment of laminitis. This disease is extremely complex, and PET is bringing new information about laminitis, which hopefully will help find new ways to fight this serious life-threatening disease.

PET in the future

The development of equine PET is the biggest step forward in horse imaging since the introduction of equine MRI over 20 years ago. The development of the standing system has considerably facilitated the use of the technique. PET is currently at the forefront of the solutions proposed to improve racehorse safety, but PET will also help with other important health issues in horses.

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here is a saying, ‘teaching Granny how to suck eggs’, which implies Granny has more knowledge and experience than we may ever teach her, and it’s a reverent approach we tend to take with any successful professional within the thoroughbred industry. Be they young or old, if they have bred or trained winners, we defer to their expertise or seek it out for our own education. And yet there’s a far more common idiom used regularly among trainers: ‘you never stop learning when it comes to horses’.

Just how do our industry professionals continue to learn? From the new ideas of the next generation coming through?

From innovations in technology and food science? From networking and sharing ideas? From trade magazines such as this, bringing the latest research news?

Possibly all of those; but there is one obvious source missing: the classroom.

Continuing professional development (CPD) is mandatory in many professions, and we wouldn’t expect it to be otherwise.

Vets, for example, need to undertake a minimum of 105 hours of CPD in any three-year period, with an average of 35 hours per year. That’s four full days a year. Veterinary nurses need to complete a minimum of 45 hours of CPD in any three-year period, with an average of 15 hours per year. Dentists must complete a minimum of 100 hours of CPD over a five-year period and must have some CPD training within two consecutive years.

Each registered practitioner must make an annual declaration of their CPD and will be removed from the register if they fail to record CPD. They are also required to have a personal development plan (PDP) outlining specific training requirements and targets. Even following a career break, to be returned to a professional register involves evidence of compliance with CPD. And would we, the client, have it any other way?

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You might argue it is to be expected of medical practitioners and agree that it’s also a safeguard for teachers and accountants, among the many professions for whom CPD is mandatory. But is it really necessary for the thoroughbred industry, which is still based very much on skills handed down through generations? How much has equine husbandry actually changed?

Possibly very little, but the business of producing and training racehorses has certainly seen a massive change in recent years. Compliance with the arrangement of working hours, new taxation methods, the safeguarding of staff against bullying, parental leave, health and safety assessment, staff induction policies, social media marketing—the list is endless, and none of the new challenges facing trainers have readymade solutions passed down from our forebears.

Closer to home in the equine world, Horse Sport Ireland (HSI) has instigated a mandatory CPD programme for all Level 1 Apprentice, Level 2 and Level 3 Coaches. HSI is keen to see all coaches progress their coaching skills, and this is the premise on which their CPD programme is based. HSI’s CPD events are a minimum of a half-day, and the minimum requirement of CPD credits is five per year. Examples of CPD are Safeguarding, worth one credit; First Aid, worth two credits; and HSI Coaching, worth three credits.

Again, it is the responsibility of each coach to maintain records, certificates and other evidence of compliance and to submit these to HSI. Anyone who fails to acquire the required credits or submit sufficient evidence will be removed from the register. Similarly, the British and Irish Pony Clubs have mandatory CPD requirements for instructors based on the same credit/point system. How much has the art of teaching people to ride changed, we may also ask?

OK, so CPD is necessary for skilled practitioners upon whom the public depends, and for teachers and coaches who need to be certain they are passing on current approved skills driven by modern standards. But how does this apply to me?

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Liv Kristiansen, Racing Director of the Norwegian Jockey Club.

and directions of our profession. It is vital, therefore, that the accredited courses and workshops recognise and address those needs. Simply acquiring a certificate for existing skills is not enough.

CPD must be a documented process that is self-directed and driven by the participant, not their employer or licensing authority. That means that to make it relevant, trainers should be sourcing areas of learning of most interest to them and suggesting topics for workshops to be run by the licencing bodies.

This has long been the practice of the various thoroughbred breeders associations, who run seasonal training programmes and workshops for participants, based on the feedback and needs of members and participants. The education programme is not compulsory, but courses and workshops are always oversubscribed and certainly the idiom of ‘never stop learning’ is embraced and practiced by those working in the breeding sector.

Should the training sector be any different?

The established racing academies of France, Ireland and Britain encourage lifelong learning for their stable staff and apprentice graduates, offering continuous vocational training for adults who wish to convert or develop their skills and progress in their profession. Guidance is provided, and existing courses adapted to the needs and professional situation of each learner,

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Association (IRTA). “Many trainers are having to do most things themselves; the majority run small operations with less than 20 horses, and they’re riding out and having to be very hands-on. They haven’t the time to be away from the yard.

“Courses are a help, but it should be a personal choice; I wouldn’t like to say mandatory. Trainers do need help with things; everyday business is becoming more complicated with more documentation needed. They need help with things like litigation, health and safety, manual handling, insurance.

They are well able to train horses but are needing more and more help with the business side of things. Seminars would be useful, but they would need to be held in the afternoon or evening.”

What is it about CPD that makes us wary? Continuing professional development certainly sounds like something we should all welcome and embrace, but it hasn’t always been marketed as such. With compulsory hours and the inference that participants are merely wasting time certifying already existent skills, CPD has become something to fear and resent, akin to being taught ‘how to suck eggs’.

We should instead remember that, working with thoroughbreds, we never stop learning; and the rapidly evolving workplace brings with it an additional pressure to learn. Correctly tailored, CPD helps enhance the skills needed to deliver a professional service to our clients, staff and satellite community, such as media and authorities, and ensures our knowledge is relevant and up to date. It should help us to be more aware of the changing trends

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Racehorse trainers fit both categories. Not all staff arrive with years of experience behind them, and the general public is actively encouraged to get involved in horse ownership. We are skilled suppliers of a public service and are expected to be trusted sources of learning for our employees.

Whether we like it or not, the modern workplace has progressed, and as trainers we are expected to progress with it. CPD is no longer simply a requirement of licencing bodies; it is expected by clients and depended upon by those to whom we owe a duty of care—our staff and horses and, most importantly, ourselves. Can we afford to be without it?

In North America, many trainers believe we can. Under some licencing jurisdictions CPD is mandatory, yet trainers still fail to attend required seminars, and the compulsory attendance is unenforced.

Deutscher Galopp has a dedicated page for trainers on its website and suggests news of seminars and workshops can be found there when available, but there are currently none.

Liv Kristiansen, Norsk Jockeyklub, reports that other than the mandatory course to gain their licence, Norwegian trainers are equally reluctant. “We have arranged some seminars, but our experience is that trainers very seldom attend any conferences or seminars even when offered.”

“I can understand that,” reflects Michael Grassick, CEO Irish Racehorse Trainers

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ABOVE: Adam Green, Head of Industry Training and Retention at the BHA.

for the entire racing industry. It aims to give those who work in racing the opportunity to undertake flexible voluntary training for a variety of core skills without the need to leave their place of work, and has a specific section for trainers. Whilst mandatory CPD as a requirement for holding a licence is not currently in our plans, it is something we would consider should there be a need to review licencing criteria as a whole in the future.”

Primarily, CPD should be engaging, life-enhancing and fun, but if it becomes mandatory by our licencing bodies, it will bring with it additional documenting of the skills, knowledge and experience gained, both formally and informally, beyond any initial training. That means added work.

“The Welfare Strategy”, published in February by the BHA, does suggest that for British trainers, at least, mandatory CPD is a strong possibility in the near future. The Horse Welfare Board recommends training and education programmes to ensure that those responsible for thoroughbred care, whether in regulated or unregulated roles, understand their responsibilities, are aware of current best practice and commit to continuous learning. The Board recommends an improved and more aligned focus on training, education and CPD programmes across the industry to ensure best practice in particular CPD

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NG yet none of the academies currently offer relevant education specific to the needs of trainers, beyond initial licencing.

Adam Green, Head of Industry Training and Retention at the BHA, reveals that CPD specific to trainers is now a major focus. “There are a wide variety of CPD options available to trainers in Britain, with some exciting developments planned in this area in the coming months. The BHA has the ability to request specific training is undertaken as part of the annual re-licencing process. Additionally, health and safety training can be a recommendation following stable visits, and safeguarding training is mandatory for licenced trainers. There are also optional development opportunities such as mental health training available on request.

“This April will see the launch of Racing2Learn, an online platform designed

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Whether you see the need for CPD or not, it is helpful to understand how to gain the most from it, particularly when it comes to staff. A learning journal or simple notebook is often recommended to review and reflect on any learning experiences.

A few starting topics may help you, or a staff member, on a path of learning and professional development: • Where am I now?

• Where do I want to be?

• What do I have to do to get there?

• What have I learned?

• How have I learned it?

• How do I apply it in practice?

• When should I review progress?

Use the notebook to record goals and, preferably no more than three, specific and achievable objectives, including dates by which you would like to achieve them. Looking at your overall career goals, make a note of what you need to do to achieve them. For short-term objectives, what can you do immediately?

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programmes for trainers, to be developed by the NTF and BHA and to form part of the licence renewal process.

As well as addressing our own needs, however, CPD is recognised as one of the main deciding factors for jobseekers. An employer who can offer CPD is looked upon far more favourably by potential employees, so the ability to understand, source and provide relevant CPD should be part of a trainer’s armoury. It can include continuing formal education, participation in professional organisations, informal educational workshops or courses, serving as a board member or committee member, improving job performance, keeping up with technology and learning about new developments. What we as trainers need to provide staff is flexibility and time to attend.

The perceived benefits are manifold. By selecting a specific area of learning, we can reflect and review our needs and ambitions, keeping an eye on our goals and uncovering gaps in our skills. In so doing, we may recognise further development needs, all of which can only help in reducing the stress of our workday and increasing our professional standing viewed by clients. The ultimate outcome of well-planned CPD is that it safeguards the public, the employer, the employee, the professional and the professional’s career. Why should that not include the racing yard?

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OU T L O OK FO R ST E M CE L L T HE R AP Y:

ITS ROLE IN TENDON REGENERATION Dr. Debbie Guest Animal Health Trust

Shutterstock

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endon injuries occur very commonly in racing thoroughbreds and account for 46% of all limb injuries.

The superficial digital flexor tendon (SDFT) is the most at risk of injury due to the large strains that are placed upon it at the gallop. Studies have reported that the SDFT experiences strains of up to 11-16% in a galloping a thoroughbred, which is very close to the 12-21% strain that causes the SDFT to completely rupture in a laboratory setting.

An acute tendon injury leads to rupture of the collagen fibres and total disruption of the well organised tendon tissue (Figure 1). There are three phases to tendon healing: an inflammatory phase that lasts for around one week, where new blood vessels bring in large numbers of inflammatory blood cells to the damaged siteâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;a proliferative phase that lasts for a few weeks, where the tendon cells rapidly multiply and start making new collagen to replace the damaged tissue; and a remodelling phase that can last for many months, where the new collagen fibres are arranged into the correct alignment and the newly made structural components are re-organised.

After a tendon injury occurs, horses need time off work with a period of box rest. Controlled exercise is then introduced, which is built up slowly to allow a very gradual return to work. This controlled exercise

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OVER THE PAST 15 YEARS, THE USE OF STEM CELLS TO IMPROVE TENDON REGENERATION HAS BEEN INVESTIGATED. STEM CELLS ARE CELLS WHICH HAVE THE REMARKABLE ABILITY TO REPLICATE THEMSELVES AND TURN INTO OTHER CELL TYPES. is an important element of the rehabilitation process, as evidence suggests that exposing the tendon to small amounts of strain has positive effects on the remodelling phase of tendon healing. However, depending on the severity of the initial injury, it can take up to a year before a horse can return to racing. Furthermore, when tendon injuries heal, they repair by forming scar tissue instead of regenerating the normal tendon tissue. Scar tissue does not have the same strength and elasticity as the original tendon tissue, and this makes the tendon susceptible to re-injury when the horse returns to work.

The rate of re-injury depends on the extent of the initial

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injury and the competition level that the horse returns to, but re-injury rates of up to 67% have been reported in racing thoroughbreds. The long periods of rest and the high chance of re-injury therefore combine to make tendon injuries the most common veterinary reason for retirement in racehorses. New treatments for tendon injuries aim to reduce scar tissue formation and increase healthy tissue regeneration, thereby lowering the risk of horses having a re-injury and improving their chance of successfully returning to racing.

Over the past 15 years, the use of stem cells to improve tendon regeneration has been investigated. Stem cells are cells which have the remarkable ability to replicate themselves and turn into other cell types. Stem cells exist from the early stages of development all the way through to adulthood. In some tissues (e.g., skin), where cells are lost during regular turnover, stem cells have crucial roles in normal tissue maintenance. However, in most adult tissues, including the tendon, adult stem cells and the tendon cells themselves are not able to fully regenerate the tissue in response to an injury. In contrast, experimental studies have shown that injuries to fetal tissues including the tendon, are capable of undergoing total regeneration in the absence of any scarring. At the Animal Health Trust in Newmarket, we have an ongoing research project to identify the differences between adult and fetal tendon cells and this is beginning to shed light on why adult

cells lead to tendon repair through scarring, but fetal cells can produce tendon regeneration. Understanding the processes involved in fetal tendon regeneration and adult tendon repair might enable new cell based and/or therapeutic treatments to be developed to improve tendon regeneration in adult horses.

In many tissues, including fat and bone marrow, there is a population of stem cells known as mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs). These cells can turn into cells such as bone, cartilage and tendon in the laboratory, suggesting that they might improve tendon tissue regeneration after an injury. MSC-based therapies are now widely available for the treatment of horse tendon injuries. However, research has demonstrated that after injection into the injured tendon, MSCs do not turn into tendon cells.

Instead, MSCs produce factors to reduce inflammation and encourage better repair by the tissueâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s own cells.

So rather than being the builders of new tendon tissue, MSCs act as the foreman to direct tissue repair by other cell types. Although there is some positive data to support the clinical application of MSCs to treat tendon injuries in horses, placebo controlled clinical trial data is lacking.

Currently, every horse is treated with its own MSCs. This involves taking a tissue biopsy (most often bone marrow or adipose tissue), growing the cells for 2-4 weeks in the laboratory and then injecting them into the site of injury.

This means the horse must undergo an extra clinical

FIG 1

Figure 1. A) The healthy tendon consists predominantly of collagen fibres (light pink), which are uniformly arranged with tendon cells (blue) evenly interspersed and relatively few blood vessels (arrows).

B) After an injury the collagen fibres rupture, the tissue becomes much more vascular, promoting the arrival of inflammatory blood cells. The tendon cells themselves also multiply to start the process of rebuilding the damaged structure.

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procedure. There is inherent variation in the product, and the cells cannot be injected immediately after an injury when they may be the most beneficial.

To allow the prompt treatment of a tendon injury and to improve the ability to standardise the product, allogeneic cells must be used. This means isolating the cells from donor horses and using them to treat unrelated horses. Experimental and clinical studies in horses, mice and humans suggest that this is safe to do with MSCs, and recently an allogeneic MSC product was approved for use in the EU for the treatment of joint inflammation in horses. These cells are isolated from the circulating blood of disease-screened donor horses and are partially turned into cartilage cells in the laboratory. They are then available “off the shelf ” to treat unrelated animals. Allogeneic MSC products for tendon injuries are not yet available, but this would provide a significant step forward as it would allow horses to be treated immediately following an injury. However, MSCs exhibit poor survival and retention in the injured tendon and improvements to their persistence in the injury site,

and with a better understanding of how they aid tissue regeneration, they are required to enable better optimised therapies in the future.

Our research has previously derived stem cells from very early horse embryos (termed embryonic stem cells, ESCs. Figure 2). ESCs can grow in the laboratory indefinitely and turn into any cell type of the body. These properties make them exciting candidates to provide unlimited numbers of cells to treat a wide range of tissue injuries and diseases. Our experimental work in horses has shown that, in contrast to MSCs, ESCs demonstrate high survival rates in the injured tendon and successfully turn into tendon cells. This suggests that ESCs can directly contribute to tissue regeneration.

To understand if ESCs can be used to aid tendon regeneration, they must be shown to be both safe and effective. In a clinical setting, ESC-derived tendon cells would be implanted into horses that were unrelated to the original horse embryo from which the ESCs were derived. The recipient horse may therefore recognise the cells as “foreign” and raise an immune response against them. Using laboratory models, we have shown that ESCs which have been turned into tendon cells do not appear recognisable by the immune cells of unrelated horses. This may be due to the very early developmental stage that ESCs originate from, and it suggests that they would be safe to transplant into unrelated horses.

To determine if ESCs would be effective and improve tendon regeneration, without the use of experimental animals, we have established a laboratory system to make “artificial” 3D tendons (Figure 3). ESC-tendon cells can produce artificial 3D tendons just as efficiently as adult and fetal cells, and this system allows us to make detailed comparisons between the different cell types.

Figure 2. A) A day 7 horse embryo used for the isolation of ESCs. Embryos at this stage of development have reached the mare’s uterus and can be flushed out non-invasively. B) “Colonies” of ESCs can grow forever in the laboratory.

Figure 3. Artificial 3D tendons grown in the laboratory are used to study different sources of tendon cells and help us work out how safe and effective an ESC-based therapy will be. A) Artificial 3D tendons are 1.5 cm in length. B) A highly magnified view of a section through an artificial tendon showing well-organised collagen fibres in green and tendon cells in blue.

FIG 2

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FIG 3

1.5 cm

Your Chances in Germany To close on April 21st 2020

DRESDEN - Sunday, June 14th

Landeshauptstadt - Group III - 55.000 Euro - 3+ - 1400 m

Waregem’s Spring Meeting 2020

To close on April 28th 2020

DORTMUND - Sunday, June 21st

Preis der Wirtschaft - Group III - 55.000 Euro - 3+ - 1750 m To close on May 5th 2020

HAMBURG - Sunday, June 28th

Hansa-Preis - Group II - 70.000 Euro - 3+ - 2400 m

HAMBURG - Wednesday, July 1st

Flieger-Preis - Group III - 55.000 Euro - 3+ -1200 m

HAMBURG - Thursday, July 2nd

Hamburg Trophy - Group III - 55.000 Euro - 3+ - 2000 m

HAMBURG - Saturday, July 4th

Mehl Mülhens-Trophy - Group III - 55.000 Euro - 3f - 2200 m

HAMBURG - Sunday, July 5th

Hamburger Stutenmeile - Group III - 55.000 Euro - 3+f/m -1600 m

MÜNCHEN - Sunday, July 26th

Dallmayr-Preis - Group I - 155.000 Euro - 3+ - 2000 m To close on May 19th 2020

BERLIN-HOPPEGARTEN - Sunday, July 19th

Fürstenberg-Rennen - Group III - 55.000 Euro - 3+ - 2400 m

BERLIN-HOPPEGARTEN - Sunday, August 9th Preis von Berlin - Group I - 155.000 Euro - 3+ - 2400 m To close on June 16th 2020

BADEN-BADEN - Sunday, September 6th

Longines Preis v. Baden - Group I - 250.000 Euro - 3+ - 2400 m - Racecourses offer additional transport allowances

For detailed conditions see European Pattern Book or call Rüdiger Schmanns (Deutscher Galopp/German Jockey Club) Tel. 0049 221 7498-20 E-Mail: rschmanns@deutscher-galopp.de

www.german-thoroughbred.com

This year Waregem Galop is organizing five Spring meetings (7th, 17th & 31st May and 14th & 28th June). One of these meetings is a so called ‘Premium Meeting’, supported by France Galop and the French PMU. Premium races are broadcasted on the French Equidia channel.

During these meetings, four races are planned and the guaranteed prize money for the winner varies from 2500€ for the handdicap off the day to 2000€ for the cllaiimers.

The race conditions are published on the Belgian Galop Federation’s website. They are available in French and Flemish but we can provide an English translation or any other required information.

Horses trained outside Belgium do not have to qualify for handicaps when they already have a handicap rating in their home country. These values will be converted to a Belgian Rating.

The showpiece however, the Bingoal Waregem St Leger, is run on the 1st of September 2020.

For this 2700m race, with a purse of 10000€ for the winner, horses must participate in qualification races in Ostend and in Waregem.

A reminder: Waregem is only 150 km from Calais, and since the Channel Tunnel is open for livestock, is less than three hours from Folkestone. Racing surface is turf and right-handed.

For further information and entries please email - dir@bgalopf.be

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The 3D cellular environment more closely resembles the tendons present in the adult horse, thus providing a more physiological relevant experimental model system. This system has demonstrated that ESC-tendon cells more closely resemble fetal tendon cells than adult tendon cells.

This may make them more likely to initiate the regenerative healing process that occurs in fetal tendons, rather than the scarring process that occurs in adult tendons. However, this will only truly be ascertained by performing placebocontrolled clinical trials and following up treated horses over time to determine if an ESC-treatment increases the number of horses that return to work and/or reduces the number of horses that suffer from re-injury.

ESC-tendon cells have other unique properties that may enable them to produce better tendon tissue regeneration. For example, in the early stages following a tendon injury there is a significant increase in inflammation. Inflammation is likely to contribute to the poor tissue regeneration that occurs because it has profound negative consequences for adult tendon cells.

We have demonstrated that adult tendon cells cannot produce artificial tendons efficiently when exposed to inflammation (Figure 4). In contrast, we found that ESC-tendon cells behaved normally when exposed to inflammation due to a lack of certain receptors for inflammatory signals on their surface. This means that tendon cells derived from ESCs may provide a useful source of cells for clinical transplantation into the injured tendon, as they are unlikely to suffer any negative effects from being placed into an inflamed environment.

Furthermore, it opens up the possibility of further studies to understand more about how ESC-tendon cells protect themselves from different inflammatory signals, allowing for the development of new drug treatments that could be used to protect adult tendon cells following a tendon injury. Protecting tendon cells from inflammation could help to improve the regeneration of healthy tendon tissue,

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| STEM CELL THERAPY |

FIG 4

Figure 4. Adult tendon cells exposed to inflammation can no longer make well-organised artificial tendons. However, ESC-tendon cells do not have the receptors for some of these inflammation signals and so produce well-organised artificial tendons even in the presence of inflammation.

thereby reducing the risk of re-injury and allowing more horses to remain in active work.

Many treatments for horse tendon injuries have been tested over the years, and to date none of them have resulted in significant improvements in re-injury rates compared to the standard use of box rest and controlled exercise alone. Stem cell therapies could allow us to shift the balance between tendon repair and regeneration, ultimately reducing the risk of re-injury and allowing more horses to return to successful racing careers. There is scope to improve the current MSC-based therapies and research to harness the potential of ESCs for tendon regeneration is ongoing, but we hope that it will have a significant impact on horse welfare in the future.

Photo: Malene Nilssen

COME, SEE AND CONQUER THE NORTH Situated in the outskirts of the capital Oslo, Øvrevoll is the only racecourse in Norway.

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STAYING IS THE FRENCH STAYING RACE John Gilmore

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Eclipse Sportswire, John Gilmoore

| F R E N C H S TAY E R S |

PO WER DIVISION RUNNING OUT OF STEAM?

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T

he European Pattern Committee’s decision that three French Gp2 middle distance races and the Gp1 Criterium de Saint Cloud for twoyear-olds risk to be downgraded in 2021, should come as no surprise to anyone.

A major problem has been the lack of quality middle distance horses being trained in France over the past few years, which the country was once famous for. Most of the better stallions like Galileo, Dubawi, Sea The Stars and Frankel are based in Ireland or England, which wouldn’t in itself be a problem if the majority of the foals born from French mares who cross the shores to be mated with them, ended up finally being trained in France. The truth is many don’t, and it’s a pattern that’s been getting worse over the years with foreigners from around the globe, buying all the commercially bred top-priced yearling horses.

Arqana can be well satisfied with last August’s three-day yearling sales. Overall turnover rose 14.8% to €42,789,000 from 228 yearlings sold, two less than how many went through the ring the previous year. But whether it’s also good for French racing is highly questionable. Once again Ecurie Des Monceaux led the way with 28 yearlings, which sold for a total of €9,975,000, including the two highest Lot 147, a Galileo colt , sold to Japanese trainer Mitsu Nakauchida for €1.5m and Lot 148, a filly by Dubawi, bought by Godolphin for €1.625m. Emphasising the studs’ trusted formula of mating, the majority of their mares with top Irish and English stallions.

Of the 20 horses sold through the ring for €500,000 or more last year, all were bought by foreign buyers and only three sired by French based stallions: Siyouni, Shalaa and Le Havre for €650,000, €600,000 and €500,000, respectively.

As most of the horses are unlikely to be trained in France,

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it’s hardly positive for maintaining a healthy quality number of racehorses in France and as a consequence is somewhat negative for the future breeding industry, when needing to replace breeding stock in the future.

Significantly, all but one of the American bloodstock agents present were GENERALLY buying only top quality fillies for their clients, not only for racing but also with future breeding in mind. This is a trend that has been increasing at European yearling sales over the past few years to top up the short supply of turf-bred quality US mares.

The negative quality of top-class horses in France is evident looking at French track results over the past few years with British- and Irish-trained horses taking a large slice of the Group races in France.

At Deauville in August last year, only the André Fabretrained Earthlight (Shamardal) prevented a clean sweep of the five Gp1 races run there by English and Irish trained horses. French-trained horses won their five Classic races in 2019, but ended up winning only 12 of the 28 total annual Gp1 races in France with foreign-based horses taking the rest. This was inferior to the previous year when the French won 14 of the 27 Gp1 races held that year.

The extra Gp1 in 2019 being the Prix Royallieu run at ParisLongchamp over the Arc weekend, which was upgraded to Gp1 status and its distance extended from 2,500m to 2,800. In the past two years the race has been won by a British and Irish trained horse. It broke a six time winning sequence of French trained horses, who had also won 15 of the previous 17 runnings since 2001.

In fact there has been a notable descending trend of French-trained Gp1 victories since 2011, when they won 22 of the 27 races on their soil. For the full picture of all Group races, it’s a similar pattern, with French-trained horses victorious in 93 from the 110 on offer in 2011, down to 72 out of 115 Group races last year.

ABOVE: Earthlight winning the Prix Morny. The only French trained Gp1 winner at Deauville last August.

| F R E N C H S TAY E R S |

BELOW: Roman Candle winning the Gp2 Prix Greffulhe.

The race is under threat for downgrading in 2021.

All in all, it’s not too much of a surprise that the European Pattern committee is looking to downgrade the Prix Grefulhe Gp2 French Derby trial, which admittedly was won by the Niarchos families Study of Man two years ago, winning easily in a small field. The colt subsequently went on to capture the Prix Du Jockey Club but has not done much since. Last year the race was won by Roman Candle, who later finished 5th in the Jockey Club and 4th in the Grand Prix de Paris. Downgrading is not the only major issue here, but more so the weak fields, notably in the past two years, shows the lack of depth in quality middle-distance horses in France.

When you consider that in the past, both the Prix Grefulhe and Prix Du Jockey Club were won by the likes

of Peintre Celebre, Montjeu and Dalakhani who all went on to win the Arc de Triomphe and Pour Mol completed the Grefulhe and English Derby double before having a training accident. All horses had one thing in common: they were all owned by owner/breeders.

The key factor is even owner/breeders who can take more time with racehorses have adapted to the change in the Jockey Club distance from 2,400m to 2,100m in 2005, which has led to them copying the commercial market and breeding shorter distance horses.

Notably, French owner/breeders like the Aga Khan and Wertheimer, by their own high standards, have not produced a top classic middle-distance performer in the past few years. It is hardly a coincidence that since 2005, the winner of the Prix du Jockey Club has never gone on to win the Prix De L’Arc de Triomphe. By contrast, in the previous 13 years, three horses: Peintre Celebre 1997, Montjeu 1999 and Dalakhani 2003 did the double.

It would appear the prophecy made by the late French journalist and historian Michel Bouchet in May 2016 rings true. “It was a grave mistake to shorten the distance of the Prix Du Jockey Club race for the French breeding industry as it’s now possible to win the Poule D’essai des Poulains over 1,600 metres and Prix Du Jockey Club with the same horse.” Three did it: Brametot, Lope de Vega and Shamardal. “All the trainers I know will regret the change, and it will only encourage breeders to produce fewer middle-distance performers.”

This emphasis on the commercial markets’ influence on breeding increasingly shorter-distance horses can be clearly shown by last year’s Arqana August yearling sale over the three days. From the 338 yearlings catalogued, Siyouni, (a miler) topped the list with 31 on offer, followed by Shalaa (a five-furlong horse) with 18 and English Derby winner Motivator – the sire of two time Arc winner Treve at the bottom of the pile with just one.

Overall, just 96 of the 228 horses sold were by stallions capable of running 2,000 metres or longer.

Since 2013 Arqana has added an extra V2 yearling sales day for precocious sprinting type racehorses, to the traditional August three-day sales. This has proved

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successfful over the years, with i 81 sold for €2,228,000 at an n average of €27,506 in 2013, compared to 110 sold for a turnover of €4,080,000 at an averagee price of €37,091 laast year. A Allt lthough there is a commercial dem mand, it is in fact further com mpounding the problem of enco ouraging breeding more sprinters at the expense of lon nger-distance horses.

But the situation has also not been n helped by France Galop tampering w wiith i the Classic program by taking out the traditional Priix Lupin Jockey Club trial an nd transferring the Priix Hocq quart to mid June as a build-up race for the Grand Prix De Paris in Jully.

Perhapss the most obvi vious i race at risk k of down wngrading n could be the prestigious tw two-year-old w Criterium International Gp11 race at ParisLo ongchamp over 1,400 metres, which last year had only tw wo o runners and both foreign; from Germany and Ireland. The race would normally be a springboard for potential Guineas horses this season. It would therefore seem somewhat incredible and humiliating, that for a total prize money allocation of €250,000, no French trainer appeared to have a horse good enough to participate.

Admitt ttedly, a French-ttrained horse wi tte winning the Arrcc for win the fi first time in four years (Waldgeist) and a third place for fir Jockey Club wiin nner Sotts tsass (by Siyouni), who didn’t stay the last 400 metres, was overall a bette ter result than expected for the French. Though havi ving only four runners—just one vin more than the Japanese entries—still doesn’tt say much for the in-depth quality of French middle-distance horses.

While the Juddmonte team’s decision to keep Enable in training for a third Arc attempt this season was probably infflluenced by the fact that there are unlikely to be any older horses to worry about, it’s just a question of whether this season’s crop of three-year-olds produces anytth hing extraordinary.

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| F R E N C H S TAY E R S |

Alain de Royer Dupré

Looking at the leading stallions’ mating numbers for 2019 in France, it’s easy to see the clear emphasis on sprint-b bred horses up to a mile by the commercial breeders here. Shallaa heads the fi field wit fie ith 170 mares covered, followed by Olympic Glory on 163, Siyouni on 150 and Le Havre on 149. From the top 10, only three others apart from Le Havre could be considered useful middle-d distance performers; Cloth of Stars on 120, Zarak 119 and Allm manzor 108. Cloth of Stars placed twic ice in the Arc stands at the Haras du Logis for a vis isit fee of €7,500.

A somewhat surprisingly high number of fi first-season fir coverings for Cloth of Stars when you consider that Youmzain who is now 17 years old and fiin nished second in the Arc rc on three occasions, notably to Zarkava and Sea The Stars, who had form argu guably u bett ttter than Cloth of Stars.

Youmzain was transferred to Ireland’s Glenvi view i stud in 2018 to become a National Hunt stallion. The previ vious i year he had only 48 coverings. “I trained the best off ffspring f

by Youmzain through the filly i Sea Calisi (Youmzain ex Triclaria) who won at Group level in France

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and later when sold to Martin Schwartz the Beverley D Stakes at Arlington Park,” indicated her former trainer, François Doumen. “I don’t understand why Youmzain never had any black type mares, when he was practically an Arc winner three times—very consistent over several years and a multi-Group winner.”

Despite the lack of black type coverings, Youmzain has still sired the winners of 192 races.

Fifty years ago stallions were only receiving around 40 mares a season, and there was a much wider stallion band. But all this has changed, and in the past 30 years top stallion numbers have jumped to 150 or more, with near double this number if shuttling to the Southern Hemisphere for their breeding season. This has created a narrowing of the stallion list and a concentration where fewer stallions are producing a greater percentage of the foals born.

This has enabled enterprising operations like Coolmore to pool together top stallions and control a large share of the commercial market. The French don’t have the same culture in racing, and there is not the same money around at studs to buy good stallions. They are also handicapped by the higher tax, and social charges in France compared to Ireland and England. Waldgeist (by Galileo) who is 50% owned by Gestut Ammerland, has now entered stud Ballylinch in Ireland.

Clearly, the change in distance of the Prix Du Jockey Club, and the high tax and social costs are major reasons why the commercial market is turning more and more to breeding quick return sprinting type bred racehorses up to 1,600 metres—as the market wants ready to run horse at two years old, not middle-distance horses that need to wait for a season; that will incur added training fees and no possible returns on investment for some time.

The Aga Khan’s French trainer, Alain de Royer Dupré,

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| F R E N C H S TAY E R S |

pointed out, “His Highness is always looking to breed horses with speed and staying power, capable of getting the 2,400 metres classic distance that has stamped a certain type of horse, which is always difficult to obtain. His Highness bred two exceptional racing colts in Dalakhani and Darshaan, who had this quality and were also successful at stud – not forgetting the brilliant race filly Zarkava.”

He added, “These things run in cycles, and hopefully the Aga Khan’s studs will produce another champion soon in the mould of the three I mentioned. Though it’s true, there are too many sprint horses being bred in the commercial market at the expense of breeding later maturing Classic distance racehorses, which cannot be good long term.”

On the bigger picture, it may well be that too much in-breeding and concentrating on fewer sires over the past 10 years to breed more shorter-distance horses, will in time create a situation that may see even further drastic changes to the racing program. So downgrading one or two Group distance races is the least of French racing’s worries.

ABOVE: Waldgeist and jockey Pierre Charles Boudot after winning the Arc de Triomphe trained by André Fabre.

LEFT: Andre Fabré

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ISSUE 69 TRAINERMAGAZINE.COM

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Dr. Paull Khan

ARCSA2020, Laura Green, Dr. Paull Khan, Janse van Rensburg

E M HF S P R I N G U P D ATE ASIAN RACING CONFERENCE 2020

T

he Asian Racing Conference (ARC) is the most venerable such institution in our sport. It may seem strange, but the Asian Racing Federation (ARF) is older than its parent body, the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities (IFHA). Its conferences, while only biennial compared with the IFHA’s annual get together in Paris after the ARC, go back further – 60 years in fact.

And, because of the liberal definition of ‘Asia’ employed by the ARF, the conference found itself this year in Cape Town, South Africa, just as it had done once before, in 1997.

What might one glean from conferences such as this about the state of racing globally?

Well, attendance at the Cape Town event could be taken as evidence of an industry in reasonable health.

The gathering attracted around 500 delegates from some 30 countries, but despite the Coronavirus effect, a large contingent of intended delegates from Hong Kong and smaller numbers from mainland China were unable to travel. Ten years ago, when the conference was hosted in Sydney, 550 attended from 36 countries. So, attendance has held up well over the past decade.

But the content of the conference perhaps tells a different story. Back in 2010, the ‘big debate’ centred on the funding of racing, and the relationship between betting and racing in this regard. What struck me about the subject matter in 2020 is that it was less about maximising income, more about the long-term survival of the sport. By

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way of evidence of this, there were sessions on the battle against the scourge of the rapid expansion of illegal betting, the threats to horse racing’s social licence in the wake of growing global concern for animal welfare and the mere use of animals by humans, and the urgent need to engage governments to retain their support for our industry.

That is not to say that it was all doom and gloom. Far from it. The conference opened with a stirring discussion of the potential benefits of 5G technology and closed with a session explaining why there is now real optimism that, after years of isolation, South African thoroughbreds will soon be able to travel freely to race and breed.

The 5G (fifth generation) standard for mobile internet connectivity is 1,000 times faster than its predecessor, can support 100 times the number of devices and enables fulllength films to be downloaded in just two seconds. While the technology is already here, coverage is limited to date but is predicted to expand with searing rapidity over coming months. The implications of this are manifold for all of us. Indeed, it was said that the opportunities it presents will be like ‘a fire hose coming at you’. Potential benefits that speakers identified for all aspects of horse racing came thick and fast. These benefits include: • Real-time horse tracking, enabling punters watching a race to identify ‘their’ horse.

• The ability to provide more immersive customer experiences – you will be able to ‘be’ the jockey of your choice and experience the race virtually from his or her perspective.

| EMHF |

• Hologram technology is already creating ways for music fans to experience gigs from around the world – why not horse racing as well?

• Through the internet, the physical world is being ‘datafied’ – great advances will flow from this in the shape of; e.g., the monitoring, through sensors, of such things as horses’ heart rates.

• Facial recognition at racecourses will (privacy laws permitting) enable the racecourse to know its crowd much better.

• Using heat-mapping and apps on racegoers’ mobiles, congestion control will be aided, and individual racegoers encouraged to go to tailored outlets.

The problem, of course, is that 5G’s benefits will be available for all sports and competing leisure and betting activities. In order to retain market share, racing will need to match others’ use of these new technologies.

While racing has some traits that work in its favour in the mobile age – it is easily understood and each race is over in a matter of minutes – in other respects it is not well placed. Racing is fragmented, with no overarching governing body and many internal stakeholders bickering over intellectual property rights. For Greg Nichols, Chair of Racing Australia, “There’s an urgency in contemporising our sport”.

On illegal betting, the message for Europe from Tom Chignell, a member of the Asian Racing Federation’s AntiIllegal Betting Task Force, and formerly of the British

ABOVE: Delegates at the 2020 Asian Racing Conference.

Horseracing Authority, was stark: illegal exchanges are already betting widely on European races. Pictures of those races are being sourced and made available through their websites. The potential for race-fixing is obvious.

Policing the regulated betting market and the identification of race-fixing are difficult enough. It becomes significantly more so in the illegal market, since operators are under no obligation to divulge suspicious betting activity and are unlikely anyway to know who their customers actually are.

It was acknowledged that illegal betting, which is growing faster than legal betting, is already so big – so international – that sport alone cannot tackle it. What is needed is multi-agency cooperation, which must include national governments. Indeed, the new Chair of the British Horseracing Authority, Annamarie Phelps, believed these efforts needed to be global to be effective: “if we start to close it down country by country, we’re just pushing people to another jurisdiction; if we act globally, we can push it out to other sports”, she argued.

The critical importance of horse welfare, and the general public’s attitude thereto, was underlined. Louis Romanet, Chair of the IFHA, said: “This is a turning point for our industry – much good has already been done, but there is more to do and dire consequences unless this happens.”

As an indicator of what has already been done, it is noticeable how, in recent years, a much higher proportion of the changes introduced to the IFHA’s International Agreement on Breeding, Racing and Wagering have been horse welfare focussed. For example, this year saw the banning of bloodletting and chemical castration practices – hot on the heels of last year’s outlawing of blistering and firing. Spurs have been banned this year, and it has become mandatory to use the padded whip not only in races but also during training.

For those outside the racing bubble, there would seem to be three core concerns: racing-related fatalities, use of the whip and aftercare. Much space was given over at the conference to the last of these, including a special session organised by the International Forum for the Aftercare of Racehorses, and in this area great strides have certainly been made in several countries. But presentations from Australia demonstrated just how necessary such efforts are.

Work on a number of fronts in the interest of the welfare of thoroughbreds has vastly been ramped up in the wake of a number of body-blow welfare scandals, none more powerful than the sickening image of horses being violently maltreated in an abattoir. No longer will the public accept that racing’s responsibility ends when the horse leaves training. Even if it is many years and several changes of ownership after it retires from racing, if it should meet a gruesome end, the world will still point an accusatory finger at us. In the public’s eye, once a racehorse, always a racehorse. It was a fitting coincidence that, just as these presentations were being made in South Africa, across the world, Britain’s Horse Welfare Board was unveiling its major review of horse welfare – a key message that there must be whole-of-life scrutiny.

There is one very troubling aspect of all of this. Having been identified as necessary for racing’s very survival, any of these tasks – exploiting new technology, tackling illegal betting or establishing systems to trace thoroughbreds from cradle to grave – will be costly and resource-hungry to put into effect. The disparity in resources and influence of ISSUE 69 TRAINERMAGAZINE.COM

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racing authorities is enormous. At one end of the spectrum, the size and national significance of the Hong Kong Jockey Club is hard to grasp: it employs over 20,000 people and last year paid €3.4bn in taxes and lottery and charitable contributions. In Victoria, and other Australian states, there is a racing minister. New Zealand has been able to boast such a post since 1990, and the current incumbent is also its deputy prime minister, no less.

At the other end, many racing authorities have but one track in their jurisdiction, exist through voluntary labour and are, unsurprisingly, not even on their government’s radar.

It would seem inevitable, without specific countermeasures, that the gap between the ‘haves’ and the ‘have-nots’ will only widen with the risk of smaller racing nations going under. It is surely desirable for our sport as a whole globally that racing exists and thrives in as many parts of the world as possible. Ensuring this is going to take much thought, will and effort.

STEWARDING FROM A REMOTE ‘BUNKER’

An oft-discussed topic in Europe over recent years is what might best be termed ‘remote stewarding’: where stewards officiate on distant race-meetings from a central location with the aid of audio and visual communications links. But it is outside our continent where you will find the pioneers of this concept. At Turffontein racecourse, Johannesburg, within the National Horseracing Authority of Southern Africa’s (NHRA’s) Headquarters, is a room from which ‘stipes’ have for some time now been linking with other racecourses across the country and sharing the stewarding duties.

South Africa has no volunteer stewards – all are salaried, stipendiary stewards and referred to universally as ‘stipes’.

Three stipes officiate at each meeting, one acting as Chair.

Recent times have been hard for South African racing and have necessitated cost savings in many areas of the

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| EMHF |

ABOVE: Saudi Cup 2020 track work.

sport’s administration. And indeed the main driver for the introduction of remote stewarding was financial.

The primary use of the system is when racing takes place at two far-flung racecourses from the capital: Port Elizabeth (over 1,000 kilometers away) and Flamingo Park, Kimberley (500 kilometers distant). For each fixture at these two tracks, one of the three stipes will be based in what has been called the Virtual Boardroom, or ‘bunker’ (to use the term adopted in Britain) with the other two stipes operating from the track. Sometimes, the Chair will be on-course; on other occasions, he will preside from the bunker. The immediate advantage is that this saves one set of travel costs.

In addition, the bunker is used on an ad hoc basis, e.g., to provide cover when a stipe at some other racetrack falls ill.

In front of the remote stipe are three screens – one providing a public satellite television feed, the other two being the pictures which the racecourse stipes are also seeing. One of these can be manipulated by the remote Stipe, to rewind and replay, at various speeds. Verbal communication is by a simple telephone landline.

When an enquiry is held, and a rider, say, is called in, the Chair will take the lead in the questioning, whether

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or not he is in the bunker. “It actually works better when the jockey is not in the room”, claims Lyle Anderson, the NHRA’s Chief Stipendiary Steward, who was acting as Chair for a Port Elizabeth meeting on the day I visited.

He explained that jockeys utilise all kinds of facial expressions to elicit sympathy. When there is no visual contact, there are no such distractions – everything is dispassionate and business-like. The remote Stipe also has the luxury of having no other between-race duties and can revisit aspects of a race in a calm and measured way.

How do those being regulated take to this impersonal interaction? “There’ve been no complaints or compliments, which we take as a good thing”, says Anderson, who believes that benefits have already started to flow in the form of increased consistency of decisionmaking from track to track.

Of course, such a system is prone to obvious technical hitches. The current parlous economic state of South Africa means that ‘load shedding’, creating frequent power outages, is frequent. So the NHRA has a back-up generator and uninterrupted power supply. If the phone line should go down, mobiles would be used. A greater risk is that the fibre-optics might suffer damage. There is some redundancy built into the system, through duelling of the lines, but at other points a single incident would put an end to the pictures.

And, by the standards of the leading racing nations – where stewards are used to being able to zoom in with great clarity and to ‘bookmark’ the race to enable rapid return to key incidents, which can then be viewed from all available camera-angles – these facilities are rudimentary.

But despite these challenges, the system works.

Could Anderson see the initiative being taken a step further, such that the stewarding from a given track is done entirely remotely? “There would need to be a ‘runner’ on the track to fetch jockeys and trainers and so on”, he replies, “But yes, I can certainly envisage that.”

So, remote stewarding offers cost-savings and greater

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consistency of decisions and post-race reports. The reduced travel also brings ‘green’ benefits, and means less wear-and-tear on the Stipes.

And there may be further benefits in a European environment. If one or more of the major European racing nations were to embrace this idea – probably extending the visual links to the tracks to allow sight of the interviewee by the interviewer and vice versa – they could in time also offer cross-border stewarding services to smaller countries. This could be either by providing the full stewards’ panel from the bunker, or a lighter touch service, where the remote steward(s) are there to give advice and guidance to the local team (much as happens in the Australian state of Victoria).

This could, naturally, be on a commercial basis, providing a new income stream for the larger racing nation while offering savings to the smaller racing authorities. Of course, the remote stewards would need to be cognisant of the local rules, but one can envisage that such a system might in itself create movement towards greater harmonisation.

And there is one further potential gain I can see. Often, particularly in smaller countries, there are difficulties in finding personnel with the necessary knowledge and aptitude to be good stewards but who are also sufficiently independent of the local racing scene to avoid conflicts of interest (or, almost as debilitating, perceived conflicts of interest). By out-sourcing the stewarding function, all such concerns are overcome at a stroke.

And why stop at out-sourcing stewarding?

Handicapping and race planning are other obvious candidates. If, indeed, the outlook is such that the ‘haves’ become richer and the ‘have-nots’ poorer, such radical moves may prove the way forward.

BELOW: The remote Stewarding bunker in Johannesburg.

SAUDI CUP

The Saudi Cup was unarguably an extraordinary event in our sport and one that will have ramifications on racing in Europe, as elsewhere. And perhaps its influences will

| EMHF |

IF WE START TO CLOSE IT DOWN COUNTRY

BY COUNTRY, WE’RE JUST PUSHING PEOPLE TO ANOTHER JURISDICTION; IF WE ACT GLOBALLY, WE CAN PUSH IT OUT TO OTHER SPORTS.

run in two directions – not only out into the wider racing world, in creating new campaign options for top-level horses, but also within the country which staged it and on the very nature of its society.

What confronted those who attended, in most cases on a first visit to Saudi Arabia, already ran counter to the expectations of many. The welcome was open and sunny; the dancing, put on to entertain between races, remarkably Western; the staff at the hotels and the track gender diverse. Those who live in Riyadh spoke of the startling speed, over the past year, of transformation towards the embracing of more tourist-friendly manifestations of life.

Towards the vision of 2030, which the Saudi’s rulers have set for itself, where dependence on oil will be lessened through growth in areas such as tourism. Saudis are youthful, and in a population of 34 million, the majority are under 30. In the EU, the figure is under one-third. This demographic is surely key in propelling change.

Of course, the fleeting visitor to a country, especially one limiting his or her exposure to an orchestrated event such as this race meeting, can never gauge the full picture.

There are many who hold strong and reasoned views on the pernicious ills of ‘sportswashing’ and its ability to divert attention from underlying societal ills.

ABOVE: BHA Chair Annamarie Phelps speaks on the ARC Welfare Panel.

To this fleeting visitor, it seemed as if one societal transformation unfurled before our eyes between the first race and the last.

The editor of the pictures, which were displayed on the screens, big and small, across the racecourse, had a penchant for cutting away from the action in favour of lingering shots of members of the crowd. This elicited reactions with which anyone who watches, say, televised cricket or darts will be very familiar: the excitement of self-recognition, the beaming smile, the nudge to one’s neighbour, the wave.

Amongst the men, that is to say.

Amongst the women, at the start of the race meeting, the smiles were awkward. Their expressions conveyed consternation, not joy. Faces were half-covered in embarrassment. This was clearly a new and unsettling experience. But, as more and more female faces were beamed across the course, those selected became emboldened. And by the end of the eight-race card, there had been a noticeable shift: the reactions of the sexes had become more as one.

From this small example, to the groundbreaking participation and successes of female riders in the ‘men v women challenge’ on the eve of the Saudi Cup, it seems that horse racing is helping – and not for the first time – to re-shape a culture. If so, perhaps we should be a little bit proud.

ISSUE 69 TRAINERMAGAZINE.COM

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IN TRODU CING

‘THOROUGHBRED TALES’ Sally Ann Grassick

T

he world of racing and breeding has been my home for my entire life. I am lucky enough to have grown up in this wonderful industry that has not only provided me with a career and the opportunity to travel the world but has also introduced me to some of my closest friends and even my boyfriend. After all of this, I feel as though I owe something of a debt back to the industry. We are ultimately just custodians of this great sport, and it is our duty to pass it on to the next generation in as healthy a state as possible.

With that in mind, I have been trying to come up with various projects that would enable me to use my presence on social media to promote racing to a wider audience. Sometimes, racing gets a hard time of it in the press around big meetings and mostly from people who are ignorant to just how well racehorses are cared for.

Last year I appealed to racing professionals to respond to negative posts on social media about racing with invitations to their studs, yards and racecourses in order to educate the public rather than with anger and accusations of stupidity. Most people will not take you up on it, but one lecturer of a sports journalism course at a university in the UK contacted me about organising a day out to a yard and the races for her students. I thought if each of us can get through to at least one person on social media, then it is worth the effort; and a positive message will spread organically from there.

I wanted to flood social media with positive messages about the racing and breeding industry and to use the hardworking people behind the scenes to do it. There are so many amazing stories in racing, and I think the sport can only benefit by sharing them with the public. For too long now, top trainers and jockeys are the only faces that the public associate with racing, but I wanted to pull back the curtain and show fans aspects of the industry that they may never have had access to before. I also wanted to provide a bridge between newcomers to the sport and the people who are the backbone of the industry—a link so that they have the opportunity to ask the questions they have always wanted to know the answers to but never had anyone to ask.

Along with some other passionate professionals from various parts of the industry, we launched ‘Thoroughbred Tales’ in November of last year. The social media project, which centres mainly around Twitter, drew inspiration from fellow curated accounts such as ‘@IrelandsFarmers’ which is hosted by a different Irish farmer every week and has almost 27,000 followers. We aim to have different guest hosts from all areas of racing and breeding showcasing the high level of care given to thoroughbreds at every stage of their lives as well as the hard work and dedication that goes on daily behind the scenes in the industry around the world. Within four months we have already over 4,000 Twitter followers, but we feel that number will grow significantly if racing professionals get behind this social media project.

We have had some great guest hosts to date including Godolphin Stud and Stable Staff Employee of the Year 2019 Great Britain Catch Bissett, who showed followers what it is like behind the scenes at Nick Alexander’s yard, Fairyhouse Racecourse Manager Peter Roe, Eddie Linehan, who runs a breaking and pre training yard in Co. Cork, and assistant trainer Leandro Mora, who was looking after USA-based trainer Doug O’Neill’s team of horses at the Dubai World Cup Carnival.

Our own Thoroughbred Tales team members Lizzy Sainty and Aisling Crowe also showed our followers around the respective stallion trails in France and Ireland. Each guest host posts photos and videos throughout their week explaining their daily routine and encouraging followers to get involved and ask them questions.

The Thoroughbred Tales team are very passionate about this project, but there is only so much we can do without the support of people within the industry. We have many exciting guest hosts already lined up for the weeks to come, but we need more people to get on board by hosting, following the account and retweeting posts. Let’s make the people at the heart of racing and breeding the real celebrities of our sport.

To get involved, look for us on Twitter: @ThoroughbrdTale or on Facebook: facebook.com/ThoroughbredTales.

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