BHA determines 'no issue' with racing surface at Newton Abbot following four fatalities

A BHA investigation into the deaths of four horses at Newton Abbot last week has concluded there were no issues with the track or surface to cause the incidents. 

Happy Helen, Hallowed Rose, Bala Brook and Cuzzicombe died at the jumps fixture last Tuesday, after which the BHA committed to scrutinising the racing surface to determine the circumstances behind the fatalities.

Veterinary teams worked with racecourse staff to examine the incidents and determined the surface was not at fault, although the Fatality Review Group will complete an extensive investigation of the circumstances.

In a release published on Wednesday morning, the BHA stated: "Following four fatalities at its most recent fixture, the BHA's racecourse and veterinary teams have worked closely with colleagues at Newton Abbot to understand as best as possible the circumstances behind each incident.

"The BHA's racecourse and facilities manager is satisfied that there was no issue with the racing surface or any other facility at the track that caused these incidents. This followed an inspection of conditions at Newton Abbot and a thorough assessment of the track's racing surface maintenance records.

"While the individual equine fatality reviews are ongoing, it has been determined that each injury was sustained in unique circumstances and there appears to be no external factor linking them."

The incident was the first time since December 2018 at Musselburgh that four horses died at a single meeting. However, there were two recent incidents of three horse deaths at a fixture occurring at Cartmel on May 27 and Market Rasen on June 7.

Newton Abbot held a fatality rate of 0.2 per cent over 2022 and 2023, with three deaths from 1,524 runners, which is below the current national jumps average of 0.42 per cent. It's next meeting is due to take place on Friday. 

Read more: 

BHA to launch investigation following deaths of four horses at Newton Abbot on Tuesday 

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