BHA introduces second scan after last month's Yarmouth fiasco

Horses are having their identity chip scanned closer to when they race as the BHA moves to tighten security following the embarrassing episode at Yarmouth two weeks ago.

A new second, and later, check at racecourses was trialled at Goodwood last week and has continued this week after three-year-old filly Millie's Kiss ran in, and was the 50-1 'winner' of, a juvenile race at Yarmouth.

A BHA disciplinary panel, including former trainer Jenny Pitman, will meet in London on Thursday to hear details of the Yarmouth mix-up, whereby trainer Charlie McBride rushed to mistakenly saddle Millie's Kiss instead of his juvenile Mandarin Princess for the two-year-old race.

The error was not spotted before the weighed-in signal made the result official and under the rules it had to stand.

Both horses had been scanned for their identity when entering the racecourse stables from their horsebox before being muddled up in the subsequent saddling.

Three-year-old Millie's Kiss mistakenly raced as stablemate Mandarin Princess in a two-year-old event at Yarmouth and won at 50-1

However, the BHA moved last week to counter any chances of a repeat with a second raft of checks on runners nearer to the time of their race. The checks were described on Wednesday as in "interim measure" while further consideration is given to longer-term policy.

A spokesman for the BHA said: "Interim measures have been put in place which utilises existing resource, as best as possible, to reduce the risk of such an incident occurring again.

"This includes scanning every runner as it leaves the stable yard before going to the paddock. This is only an interim measure at present as the solution is not without logistical challenges.

"In the longer term we are looking at possibilities as to what a properly resourced model would look like to carry out similar measures on a permanent basis."

Millie's Kiss is due to be disqualified from the Yarmouth contest at the BHA inquiry with Fyre Cay, the odds-on favourite on the day, set to be promoted from the runner-up position.

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