Right: Trainer Ciaron Maher, was quoted as saying that he would have to shoot most of his horses if jumps racing was banned. (Photo: Glen Watson, The Age)
.Arguments against jumps racing
1. Jumps racing puts horses at risk
It has been claimed that the number of horses that have been killed or injured in jumps racing is putting the industry at risk. The Victorian Racing Minister, Robert Hulls, has stated that the death count was making jumps racing increasingly unsustainable.
Mr Hulls has noted, 'Five per cent of jumps horses fell in competition this year and two per cent were killed..
If that was transferred across flat racing obviously there would be public outcry in relation to the racing industry generally.
I think that any death or injury of a horse, any injury to a jockey, is a tragedy, it's a horrible spectacle, it's a horrible thing to watch and anybody involved in the industry I'm sure would take that view.'
Animals Australia's Executive Director Glenys Oogjes has outlined the number of horse deaths that have occurred in recent years. Mr Oogies has stated, 'The Brumby government can no longer ignore the carnage. Racing Victoria might be willing to turn a blind eye as the horses topple over jumps and are destroyed but the community is appalled. Nothing short of a ban is now acceptable.
Minister Hulls must demand the cancellation of the jumps racing at Warrnambool next week to prevent further horses being injured and killed.
The Warrnambool jumps racing track has a gruesome history with six jumps horses killed in the past three seasons alone. This year's May Carnival includes five jumps races over three days and culminates with the Grand Annual Steeple which is over 5.5 Km with 33 jumps - the longest race in Australia, and most jumps of any jumps race in the world.
Twelve horses died at official jumps races in Victoria during the 2008 season, and another died at a trial. Horses die in jumps racing at a rate 10 - 20 times the fatality rate to starters in flat racing.
2. Jumps racing puts jockeys at risk
A new study has found that occupational health and safety standards need to improve to reduce the number of jockeys injured or killed in Australia's horse racing industry. In an Australian first, researchers from the Menzies Research Institute in Hobart studied falls, injuries and deaths among horse racing jockeys over four years.
They found jockeys had a higher risk of death compared with skydivers, motorcyclists and boxers. The study, published in the latest Medical Journal of Australia, found the number of falls were increasing each year.
The study also found that jockeys were at significantly greater risk of injury if they rode horses over jumps. The study found jockeys had an average of one fall every 240 rides in flat racing and one fall every 19 rides in jumps racing. Interestingly, the study found that while jockeys were more likely to be injured in a jumps race their chances of being killed were greater in a flat race.
3. Reforms have not succeeded in making the sport safer
The current set of reforms are part of a series of reforms to jumps racing that have been either proposed or put in place in recent years, the last set as recently as 2008. Critics of jumps racing claim that such reforms have had no effect on reducing the number of horse deaths.
The Victorian president of the RSPCA, Dr Hugh Wirth stated, 'We're appalled and outraged at this decision.' Dr Wirth said the RVL board had shown a lack of independence from the industry it was designed to oversee. The doctor stated, 'These changes are just window dressing. We've been there before in three reviews over the past seven years.'
In a letter published in The Age on May 8, 2009, it was stated, 'With five jumps horses killed in the past few weeks, the racing industry is talking about another review. Having attended the reviews of 2002, 2005 and 2008, let me tell you what a review comprises. First, the racing industry decides what questions will be addressed. Second, it provides the adjudicator. Third, it provides a report that substantiates that jumps racing is an integral part of the thoroughbred industry . . . and it gets another three years before the next review.
Following the 2002 review, new "super-safe" jumps were developed, a misnomer if ever there was one. Anti-jumps campaigners said that the horses would simply run faster and still fall and die, and that's what happened.
Then the industry was going to make the jumps harder, so that horses would have to "respect" the jumps. That didn't work, either.
The simple truth is that if you take a group of thoroughbreds and run them together over obstacles, some will fall and some of those will suffer appalling injuries. The five to die so far have gained a broken neck, a fractured spine, a fractured pelvis, and two horses sustained broken legs. Nice sport.'
4. Jumps racing damages the reputation of all horse racing
Jeff Hall in an opinion piece published in Crikey on June 30, 2008, stated, 'The RSPCA is not the only organisation calling for jumps racing to be outlawed. Increasingly, the flat racing industry is concerned at the damage falls in hurdle events - especially in major races watched by punters around the nation - does to the image of the sport of thoroughbred racing.'
On may 17, 2009, Victorian Racing Minister, Robert Hulls, stated that safety improvements to jumps racing were essential to prevent tarnishing the reputation of the entire horse racing industry.
Mr Hulls stated, 'The last thing we want is for jumps racing to be the lead in the saddlebag of the racing industry generally in this state.'
Victorian Advocates for Animals president Lawrence Pope has stated that his organisation is disappointed that Racing Victoria has postponed 'the inevitable'.
Mr Pope has claimed, ' Horses will continue to fall and die, the community will continue to be appalled.
The Government must move now and secure the good reputation of racing and provide an alternative for jumps, including proper financial pathways for the transition of people in the industry.'
5. Jumps racing is unnecessary
It has been claimed that jumps racing is not necessary for the racing industry to remain viable. Opponents of jumps racing note that Victoria and South Australia are the only Australian states where jumps races are still run. Despite this, they claim the racing industry is still doing well in the other states.
It has further been claimed that jumps racing is not even a significant part of the racing calendar even in Victoria. In an opinion piece published in Crikey on June 30, 2008, Jeff Hall stated, 'Jumps racing has been in decline for some time. In Victoria it is now largely confined to the winter and late autumn months. The Cup Day Hurdle has long ceased to be a part of the Melbourne Cup Day program at Flemington. The other problem with jumps racing events is that they are not popular with punters.'
It has also been claimed that jumps racing is either not necessary to prevent retired flat racers being put down or is ineffective for this purpose.
Dr Hugh Wirth the president of RSPCA Victoria has stated, 'Some interested parties have ... argu[ed] that the horses will need to be put down as they will be redundant in racing circles. This idea is preposterous. There are a significant number of animal welfare organisations who have skilled programs to rehouse horses, and could offer owners and trainers assistance.' Others have claimed that jumps racing does virtually nothing to save unwanted horses as huge numbers are already being put down each year.
In August 2008 the Victorian State Government called on racing authorities to stop the industry from killing thousands of greyhounds and racehorses considered too slow or too old to race.
Racing Minister Rob Hulls indicated that he expected the industry to focus on animal welfare after a report by retired County Court judge Gordon Lewis raised concerns about treatment of unwanted horses and greyhounds.
Judge Lewis believed the issue was so important he went outside the terms of reference in his inquiry into the integrity of the state's three racing codes to condemn the practice of culling animals that could not win races. The judge estimated that of the more than 7500 greyhounds born each year in Victoria, only 1000 would not be destroyed as young dogs. Most would be put down because they were too slow to race. He had no doubt 'similar problems exist with the welfare of horses'. Judge Lewis called for further investigation. Opponents of jumps racing have claimed that if the sport is supposed to be saving the lives of horses it is clearly failing.
Arguments in favour of jumps racing
1. Reforms are being made to reduce the risk to horses and jockeys
A whole range of safety measures have been put in place to ensure that jumps racing is as safe as possible. Robert Smerdon, the trainer of reigning champion jumper Some Are Bent, has explained that the hurdles and steeples in use today are much safer because they are made primarily of nylon brush and enable a racehorse to jump through rather than over the obstacle.
On July 1, 2008, The Australian Jumps Racing Association (AJRA) presented a nine-point plan to Racing Victoria Ltd officials suggesting means of further improving safety.
The AJRA's recommendations included that the white sighter line on all jumps be repainted and made wider; that RVL amend its track preparation policy to make all tracks used for jumps racing no firmer than a dead four; that stewards consider a wider range of issues when assessing jumps racing incidents and racing matters; that riders' skill courses be expanded and more coaching of riders be undertaken and that workshops be conducted for trainers.
Tha AJRA also recommended that additional jumps be added in an attempt to slow the pace of races; that jumps be located next to the inside fence, rather than the outside; that the wings marking the approach to jumps be set at the same angle on all courses and that jockeys be given more encouragement to retire horses from races when they are out of contention.
Referring to the plan to repaint the sighter lines and make them wider jumps trainer, Robbie Laing has stated, 'The sighter lines are very important; they've doubled the size of them and repainted them and they've all jumped faultless today. Horses don't have the best eyesight and some of the jockeys said the white lines had all but gone...'
2. Further reforms are going to be put in place
Racing Victoria's board has unanimously resolved to continue with jumps racing in the state. A number of reforms will be introduced to make the sport safer for horses and jockeys. Many will be implemented immediately.
Strand starts are to be trialled in consultation with the Victorian Jockeys Association.
All horses are to be schooled in the presence of Stewards from June 1 before being permitted to participate in trials for the first time.
New strict qualifying conditions for entry into premium jumps races with prize money of $A70,000 or more will be adopted from June 1 with the following policy: 'A condition of entry for this race requires horses to carry a jumps rating of at least 115. The horse must also have either won a jumps race or been placed 1st, 2nd, 3rd or 4th in a jumps race other that a maiden jumps race. All entries are subject to AR50.'
There will be ongoing education of jumps riders regarding race tempo and their obligations under racing rules to retire a fatigued horse and the strict enforcement of the rule and imposition of appropriate penalties for any contraventions including suspension.
The current final obstacle in all jumps races are to be removed - the currently placed second last obstacle becomes the last.
Protocols and standards are to be implemented to conduct heart-rate checks of all horses after they complete their final qualification trial to ensure they are fit to race;
Races beyond 3600 metres are to be programmed to provide lead up races to feature jumps events including increasing the distance of the hurdle race scheduled for 25 July 2009 at Moonee Valley from 3200 metres to 3700 metres and the creation of a new 4000 metre race in the lead up to the Warrnambool Grand Annual.
Those in the industry claim that jumps horses are well treated. Amy Johnston, whose Mornington-based family has been involved in jumps racing for generations has stated that concerns about the horses' welfare were 'ill-founded'.
Ms Johnston has stated, 'They are the most well-looked after animals and those people (animal activists) are better off spending their time elsewhere.'
3. Jumps racing is an important source of employment for jockeys
It has been claimed that many jockeys rely on jumps racing for their livelihoods. The Australian Jumps Racing Association warned of a 'massive class action' against Racing Victoria Limited if it closed down the sport.
It has been claimed that even the short term ban implemented in May 2009 had an impact on jockeys' livelihoods. Three former Coastal jockeys lost their livelihoods when jumps racing was suspended in Victoria after three horse deaths in two days at the Warrnambool carnival.
If it becomes a permanent ban, leading hurdles hoop Adam Trinder, rising star Trent Wells and ex- Devonport jockey Gerrad Gilmour have all stated they fear their careers will be cut short.
Trent Wells moved to Melbourne in 2008 following a ban on hurdles in Tasmania. He has stated, 'You ask any hurdles jockey and they are very dejected and don't know where their future is going.'
4. Jumps racing prevents retired race horses being put down
It has been claimed that Victoria has more thoroughbred horses than it has a need for and that retired race horses are likely to be put down if they cannot be raced over jumps.
Responding to a comment piece by Robert Merkel, Paul Norton stated, 'I think the issue of jumps racing also needs to be looked at in the context of the high level of what's known as "horse wastage". The number of thoroughbred horses bred in Australia each year is far in excess of the number which will eventually go on to race with some success (in part because the really big bucks are associated with breeding horses rather than racing them); a large percentage of those which don't make it to, or on, the track can't be gainfully employed in other occupations such as show jumping or riding schools, and those that can't be gainfully employed make for more expensive, land-intensive and labour-intensive pets than many people can afford.
This leads us to the question of what are the practical alternatives for those horses that are currently being raced over the jumps that are more humane and sustainable than both jumps racing and the knackery.'
One jumps trainer has actually claimed that he would have no choice but to put his horses down if jumps racing were banned in Victoria.
Warrnambool horse trainer David Londregan has seven horses and has claimed he would be forced to have half of them put down. Mr Londregan has stated that a ban would destroy his livelihood.
Mr Lodregan has claimed,'I'm going to have to shoot my horses and I will, well I'm threatening to send a head or two around the countryside to the powers to be, just to remind them what damage they are doing to our horses.'
Australian Jumps Racing Association president Rodney Rae has questioned the future of the around 250 horses that enter jumping each year should the sport be banned. Mr Rae has stated, 'Without jumping the majority of these horses are destined for the knackery and mistreatment.'
5. Jumps racing is important to the economies of rural communities and contributes to the livelihoods of many Victorians
It has been claimed that jumps racing is important to rural economies and contributes to the livelihoods of many Victorians.
Australian Jumps Racing Association president Rodney Rae has said the livelihood of 2,500 Victorian jumps horse owners would be directly at stake were jumps racing to be banned.
Mr Rae said more than 1000 trainers while vets, ferriers and feed merchants would be affected by any ban. Mr Rae further claimed the industry injected up to $30 million into the Warrnambool economy alone through jumps racing.
Amy Johnston, whose Mornington-based family has been involved in jumps racing for generations, said the industry 'means everything to me. My grandfather is a Hall of Fame trainer and his legacy, I've wanted to carry it on myself. I've grown up with jumping. It's paid for my education. It's part of my family.'