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Frontiers in veterinary science2025; 11; 1481016; doi: 10.3389/fvets.2024.1481016

Linkage of jockey falls and injuries with racehorse injuries and fatalities in Thoroughbred flat racing in Victoria, Australia.

Abstract: Racehorse and jockey incidents on race-days frequently occur together, yet risk factors for their occurrence have historically been investigated separately. Consideration of both horses and humans in tandem is required for a One Health approach to risk reduction. Our objectives were to therefore identify modifiable risk factors for adverse outcomes that are common or conflicting to both horses and their jockeys in Thoroughbred racing. Unassigned: Australian Single National System records for the 2004/05 to 2018/19 flat racing season were merged with the corresponding Australian Racing Incident Database records. Incidence rate ratios (IRR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) were estimated for the outcomes of racehorse musculoskeletal injury (MSI), racehorse fatality, jockey falls and jockey injury using Poisson regression. Horse-level, race-level, jockey-level and trainer-level factors associated with each adverse outcome during or post-race were identified using multivariable logistic regression. Unassigned: The incidence of MSI was 21.21 (20.84, 21.59), racehorse fatalities 0.55 (0.50, 0.61), jockey falls was 3.01 (2.80, 3.24), and jockey injuries 1.79 (1.63, 1.97) per 1000 flat race starts. There was a decrease in racehorse MSI and jockey falls over the study period but no change in racehorse fatality or jockey injury incidence. In multivariable analysis, longer race distances and higher caliber races were associated with horse (p < 0.01), but not jockey, incidents. Firmer turf surfaces were associated with greater risk of both horse incidents and jockey falls (p < 0.05). Racehorses that were of older age at their first start, and/or had prior race-day injuries had a greater risk of injury and fatality (p < 0.001, p < 0.01, respectively). The most prominent risk factor for jockey fall or injury was a racehorse incident, although overall contributing to a relatively small proportion; 8.6% (n = 42/489) of jockey falls and 15.3% (n = 24/147) of injuries. Jockeys with fewer career starts were at greater risk of falling, and those with a higher percentage of last place finishing positions were at greater risk of injury (p < 0.001). Unassigned: As there were no conflicting risk factors identified between racehorse and jockey injury, policies aimed at reducing horse injury risk are also expected to benefit their riders.
Copyright © 2025 Morrice-West, Thomas, Wong, Flash, Whitton and Hitchens.
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Publication Date: 2025-02-13 PubMed ID: 40018508PubMed Central: PMC11865924DOI: 10.3389/fvets.2024.1481016Google Scholar: Lookup
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Summary

This research summary has been generated with artificial intelligence and may contain errors and omissions. Refer to the original study to confirm details provided. Submit correction.

The research reports on the relationship between accidents involving jockeys and injuries to racehorses during flat races in Victoria, Australia. It finds that changes made to reduce the chance of injuries to horses may also reduce the risk to jockeys, as no conflicting risk factors were found in the studied incidents.

Data Collection and Analysis

  • The researchers compiled records from the Australian Single National System for the flat racing seasons of 2004/05 to 2018/19. They matched these records with the corresponding entries in the Australian Racing Incident Database.
  • The study focused on incidents that resulted in musculoskeletal injuries (MSI) to the horses, racehorse deaths, falls by jockeys and injuries to the jockeys.
  • The research team employed Poisson regression for estimating Incidence rate ratios (IRR) along with their 95% confidence intervals (CI).
  • They then utilized multivariate logistic regression to identify the risk factors for these adverse events, taking into account variables at the horse, race, jockey, and trainer levels.

Key Findings

  • The analysis found that the incident rate of MSI in horses was 21.21, racehorse deaths was 0.55, jockey falls was 3.01, and jockey injuries was 1.79 per 1000 flat starts.
  • There was a decrease in the incidence of horse MSIs and jockey falls over the study period, but no significant change in the number of horse fatalities or jockey injuries.
  • The data showed that longer races and races of a higher caliber were more risky for the horses, while firmer turf surfaces increased the risk of incidents for both horses and jockeys.
  • Horses that were older at their first start or had previous race-day injuries were more likely to suffer injuries or die.
  • One of the biggest risk factors for a jockey fall or injury was an incident involving the horse, although this scenario was fairly infrequent, contributing to 8.6% of jockey falls and 15.3% of their injuries.
  • Less experienced jockeys were more prone to falls, and those with a high rate of last place finishes were more likely to get injured.

Study Implications

  • No conflict was found between the risk factors for horse injuries and jockey injuries, suggesting that measures to reduce the risk for one are also likely to benefit the other.

Cite This Article

APA
Morrice-West AV, Thomas M, Wong ASM, Flash M, Whitton RC, Hitchens PL. (2025). Linkage of jockey falls and injuries with racehorse injuries and fatalities in Thoroughbred flat racing in Victoria, Australia. Front Vet Sci, 11, 1481016. https://doi.org/10.3389/fvets.2024.1481016

Publication

Frontiers in veterinary science
ISSN: 2297-1769
NlmUniqueID: 101666658
Country: Switzerland
Language: English
Volume: 11
Pages: 1481016

Researcher Affiliations

Morrice-West, Ashleigh V
  • Equine Centre, Melbourne Veterinary School, Faculty of Science, University of Melbourne, Werribee, VIC, Australia.
Thomas, Megan
  • Equine Centre, Melbourne Veterinary School, Faculty of Science, University of Melbourne, Werribee, VIC, Australia.
Wong, Adelene S M
  • Equine Centre, Melbourne Veterinary School, Faculty of Science, University of Melbourne, Werribee, VIC, Australia.
Flash, Meredith
  • Melbourne Veterinary School, University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, Australia.
Whitton, R Chris
  • Equine Centre, Melbourne Veterinary School, Faculty of Science, University of Melbourne, Werribee, VIC, Australia.
Hitchens, Peta L
  • Equine Centre, Melbourne Veterinary School, Faculty of Science, University of Melbourne, Werribee, VIC, Australia.

Conflict of Interest Statement

The authors declare that this study received funding from Racing Victoria Ltd. The funder provided data for the study. The funder was not involved in the study design, interpretation of data, or the writing of this article.

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Citations

This article has been cited 1 times.
  1. Zhang Z, Yang Y, Ma Y, Mai Z, Fu H, Wang X, Cao X, Li T, Li J, Guo Q. Clinical Diagnosis, Treatment, and Outcome Analysis of a Horse with Proximal Sesamoid Bone Fracture Complicated by Flexor Tendinitis. Vet Sci 2026 Jan 2;13(1).
    doi: 10.3390/vetsci13010040pubmed: 41600695google scholar: lookup
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