The state’s racing boss has written a personal email to all Victorian thoroughbred owners to explain his organisation had not “closed the book” on its review of the Caulfield Cup horse tragedy.
In the Thursday afternoon message, Racing Victoria CEO Aaron Morrison said the death of Chris Waller’s star mare Ohope Wins was a “tragic racing accident” that had been felt deeply across the industry.
“The vision clearly showed that Ohope Wins was brought down by the fallen Half Yours, rather than suffering a spontaneous injury beforehand,” Morrison wrote.
“However, we have not simply closed the book. Our veterinary team is separately overseeing a standard post-incident review, including a post-mortem, so that any relevant information can be used for research and education.
“Racing is a tough and competitive sport and can never be entirely without risk.”
The tragic two-horse fall happened in the final 300m of the $6 million Caulfield Cup in front of a packed public section of the racecourse.
Last year’s winner Half Yours emerged with minor lacerations, while jockeys Jye McNeil and Mark Zahra were taken to hospital before being discharged on Sunday.
Zahra is waiting on medical advice to be cleared to resume riding, but will miss Saturday’s Cox Plate day, while McNeil has been given the all-clear.
“Saturday was a stark reminder of the risks our jockeys accept every time they ride and their immense bravery,” Morrison said.
“Like our horses, their safety is of paramount importance.”
Morrison said Racing Victoria’s trackside vets had worked for an extended period “exploring every option to save Ohope Wins in consultation with her owners” after the mid-race carnage.
“Tragically, despite those efforts, she could not be saved,” he said.
The email explained that stewards had reviewed all camera angles and interviewed Zahra and McNeil on Tuesday morning, as well as three other jockeys from the race – Jabez Johnstone, Rachel King and Ethan Brown – before clearing all riders of blame.
“We’re blessed to have an outstanding stewards panel in Victoria, and they worked proactively and swiftly to conclude a thorough inquiry into the incident on Tuesday,” Morrison said.
“Our responsibility is to identify the risks we can reasonably foresee, put strong safeguards around them through the best available science, veterinary care and rules and respond openly and professionally when an incident occurs.”
Morrison backed the industry’s ongoing approach to safety, and the efforts of Racing Victoria’s 35 vets, highlighting a 99.95 per cent safety record involving 40,000 starters in races each year.
“That’s a fatality rate of 0.05% in flat races, which is among the best globally,” he said.
“In the Caulfield Cup, the last fatality was when Mummify sadly went amiss post-race 21 years ago.
“As we approach Melbourne Cup week, I want to remind the industry of the veterinary measures in place to protect our horses.
“Our most significant safety initiatives are focused on the Melbourne Cup and international horses. Why? Because they were overrepresented in our serious injury and fatality data.”
The Melbourne Cup was brought to its knees in 2020 after seven deaths in seven years, many of them from soundness issues.
“The veterinary protocols introduced in 2021 have delivered five successive Melbourne Cups without a serious horse injury,” Morrison said.
“Whilst that is a strong result, we are not complacent and know that not every incident can be prevented.
“When it comes to raceday, we will have five vets on course each day of the Melbourne Cup carnival, supported by a team of veterinary nurses and sampling assistants.
“On Caulfield Cup day, our vets, stewards, medical team and raceday staff responded with professionalism and compassion in the most difficult of circumstances, and I thank them for that.”
Morrison offered the industry’s condolences to Waller, Ohope Wins’ owners Yulong and Waller’s staff.
“The loss of any horse is felt most profoundly by those who work with them,” he said.
Morrison also congratulated trainer Gavin Bedggood and jockey John Allen for winning the Caulfield Cup, as well as host Melbourne Racing Club.
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