JC / Railbird - Tepidly Going

Tepidly Going

… where many have gone before, the Thoroughbred Safety Committee, formed by the Jockey Club in the midst of the uproar that followed Eight Belles breaking down after finishing second in the Kentucky Derby, announced Tuesday that it recommends eliminating steroids, banning toe grabs, and establishing more humane whip rules:

“Steroids, toe grabs and whip issues were all first identified at our Welfare and Safety of the Racehorse Summits,” said Stuart S. Janney III, chairman of the Thoroughbred Safety Committee. “After closely examining each of them in detail and talking to many individuals with expertise in each area over the past several weeks, we feel strongly that these recommendations and actions will enhance the health and safety of both our equine and human athletes and further ensure the integrity of our sport.”

The NTRA, Breeders’ Cup, TOBA, HBPA, and several racetracks have endorsed the recommendations, which tells us only that in advance of the congressional hearings on horse racing scheduled for Thursday the industry is scrambling to show it’s unified enough to deal with the sport’s myriad problems and is really, really trying very, very hard to do all it can to improve equine safety and the integrity of the game — no federal intervention required, thanks. Full recommendations from the committee will be delivered during the Jockey Club Round Table on August 17. I hope not only that those recommendations to come at Saratoga are bolder, and address breeding and durability as much as they do training and safety, but that the industry moves quickly from talking to action, especially regarding these issues on which everyone apparently agrees.

Posted by JC in Health/Safety on 06/18/2008 @ 8:30 am / Follow @railbird on Twitter