A horse race is a contest of speed and endurance between two horses or teams of horses. It is one of the oldest of all sports and has evolved from a primitive contest between animals to today’s multimillion dollar industry with sophisticated electronic monitoring equipment and massive fields of runners. It has been practiced in many cultures and civilizations throughout history, and it is an important part of myth and legend as well as contemporary life.
The horse is a large and athletic animal that is well adapted for running long distances. Its long legs and short back allow it to cover ground rapidly, making it a good sprinter. The horse has a very efficient gait known as the “pacing” gait, in which its front and back legs move on each side of the body at the same time. To help horses not break their stride, most pacers wear hobbles — straps that connect a horse’s front and back leg on each side of the body.
Horse racing has been popular in North America for more than a century. Samuel Ogle is credited with introducing organized thoroughbred racing to the colonies when he laid out a course at Annapolis in 1745. During the American Revolution, the sport gained popularity because of its association with the British military and with the new country’s political and social elite.
After a long day of racing, it’s common for spectators to relax in the stands with a mint julep and watch the post-race ceremony. But behind the romanticized facade of a horse race is an ugly world of injuries, drug abuse, and gruesome breakdowns. And even though countless horses survive the exorbitant physical stress of racing and training, a number of them, including Eight Belles in 2008 and Medina Spirit in 2015, die from these circumstances.
Horse racing can be a great form of entertainment for people of all ages, but the way it’s run is not in the best interests of the horses themselves. A profound ideological reckoning on a macro business and industry level, as well as within the minds of the men and women who run the sport, is needed to ensure that all horses receive proper care and respect. This would look like a complete restructuring from top to bottom that prioritizes the needs of the horses, including caps on the number of times they can run and a comprehensive wraparound aftercare solution. It would also include embracing a more natural and equine-friendly lifestyle for horses so they can live longer, healthier lives. And, most importantly, it would require the race to stop putting profits ahead of the welfare of its star athletes. Only then can the sport hope to turn its declining fortunes around.