Churchill Downs Racetrack, dwelling of the Kentucky Derby, introduced Friday that it’s suspending racing at its services following the deaths of a dozen horses.
The Louisville monitor will stop operations from June 7 by means of the rest of the Spring Meet, which is scheduled to finish July 3, and races scheduled there can be moved to a different location.
“Churchill Downs Racetrack has seen an uncommon variety of horse accidents over the earlier month leading to 12 equine fatalities,” the corporate stated in an announcement, noting that in a number of investigations into the horses’ deaths, “no single issue has been recognized as a possible trigger and no [discernible] sample has been detected to hyperlink the fatalities.”
Joe Robbins/Icon Sportswire by way of Getty Photographs
Invoice Carstanjen, CEO of the racetrack, added he’s hopeful that the monitor’s closure will enable investigators to seek out solutions.
“What has occurred at our monitor is deeply upsetting and completely unacceptable,” he stated. “Regardless of our greatest efforts to determine a trigger for the latest horse accidents, and although no points have been linked to our racing surfaces or atmosphere at Churchill Downs, we have to take extra time to conduct a top-to-bottom assessment of the entire particulars and circumstances in order that we will additional strengthen our floor, security and integrity protocols.”
The deaths solid a somber temper over the Kentucky Derby in early Could, when the sixth and seventh horses to die had been injured throughout their races. Each horses had been three years previous and euthanized as a consequence of knee and ankle accidents.
“He simply took a nasty step on the market,” Jeff Hiles, one of many horses’ trainers, instructed The Related Press on the time. “They may do the identical factor working within the area as they may on the monitor. So it’s very unlucky. That’s what we cope with.”
The races scheduled at Churchill Downs will now happen about 80 miles east of Louisville at Lexington’s Ellis Park.