Career profile and pattern of racing for Thoroughbred jumps-racing horses in New Zealand
M. J. Gibson
A * , K. A. Legg A , E. K. Gee A , Y. Y. Chin A and C. W. Rogers A B
A
B
Abstract
Racing structure and focus for racehorses differs across jurisdictions and is poorly described. In New Zealand and Australia, jumps racing accounts for a small proportion of total Thoroughbred races each year, as opposed to the larger jumps-racing (National Hunt) industry with purpose-bred horses found in the UK and Ireland.
This study aimed to describe the career profile and pattern of racing for Thoroughbred jumps-racing horses in New Zealand.
Metrics from every horse with a full jumps-racing career (n = 1276, 89% geldings) between the 2005/06 and 2021/22 racing seasons (n = 40,302 starts) were examined. Descriptive statistics, box plots and heat maps were used to describe the data, by using horse age as a proxy for career progression.
Jumps-racing horses had a median of 17 flat starts (IQR 9–30) before their first jumps-racing start. The median career of a jumps-racing horse was 3.7 years (IQR 2.3–5.2) and 29 starts (IQR 16–44). Older horses had a decreasing number of flat-racing starts and an increasing proportion of steeplechase-racing starts. However, the majority of horses still had at least one flat-race start per calendar year, often prior to the first jumps race. Most horses had one spell each season (length 194 days, IQR 124–259), and a condensed preparation length over the winter months, with a median of 14 days (IQR 10–21) between starts.
The career pattern for jumps-racing horses in New Zealand reflects the industry retention of horses with a prior career in flat racing into a secondary jumps-racing career. Successful horses have increased focus on preparation for the winter jumps-racing season.
Jumps racing provides a secondary racing career for some flat-racing horses, particularly geldings. This strategy reduces wastage of horses from the industry.
Keywords: hurdle, jumps racing, periodicity, secondary career, steeplechase, sustainability, Thoroughbred racing, wastage.
References
Allen WR, Brown L, Wright M, Wilsher S (2007) Reproductive efficiency of Flatrace and National Hunt Thoroughbred mares and stallions in England. Equine Veterinary Journal 39, 438-445.
| Crossref | Google Scholar | PubMed |
Bailey CJ, Reid SW, Hodgson DR, Bourke JM, Rose RJ (1998) Flat, hurdle and steeple racing: risk factors for musculoskeletal injury. Equine Veterinary Journal 30, 498-503.
| Crossref | Google Scholar | PubMed |
Balendra G, Turner M, McCrory P (2008) Career-ending injuries to professional jockeys in British horse racing (1991–2005). British Journal of Sports Medicine 42, 22-24.
| Crossref | Google Scholar | PubMed |
Boden L, Anderson G, Charles J, Morgan K, Morton J, Parkin T, Slocombe R, Clarke A (2006) Risk of fatality and causes of death of Thoroughbred horses associated with racing in Victoria, Australia: 1989–2004. Equine Veterinary Journal 38, 312-318.
| Crossref | Google Scholar | PubMed |
Bolwell CF, Rogers CW, Gee EK, Rosanowski SM (2014) Descriptive statistics and the pattern of horse racing in New Zealand. 1. Thoroughbred racing. Animal Production Science 56, 77-81.
| Crossref | Google Scholar |
Chin YY, Rogers CW, Gee EK, Stafford KJ, Cameron EZ (2022) The pattern of breeding and management within the New Zealand Thoroughbred breeding industry 2005–2015. (II) The mare population. Animal Production Science 64, AN21534.
| Crossref | Google Scholar |
Crawford KL, Finnane A, Greer RM, Phillips CJ, Woldeyohannes SM, Perkins NR, Ahern BJ (2021) Appraising the welfare of Thoroughbred racehorses in training in Queensland, Australia: the incidence, risk factors and outcomes for horses after retirement from racing. Animals 11, 142.
| Crossref | Google Scholar | PubMed |
Ely ER, Avella CS, Price JS, Smith RKW, Wood JLN, Verheyen KLP (2009) Descriptive epidemiology of fracture, tendon and suspensory ligament injuries in National Hunt racehorses in training. Equine Veterinary Journal 41, 372-378.
| Crossref | Google Scholar | PubMed |
Ely ER, Price JS, Smith RK, Wood JLN, Verheyen KLP (2010) The effect of exercise regimens on racing performance in National Hunt racehorses. Equine Veterinary Journal 42, 624-629.
| Crossref | Google Scholar |
Flash ML, Crabb HK, Hitchens PL, Firestone SM, Stevenson MA, Gilkerson JR (2022) Factors associated with racing performance and career duration for Victorian-born Thoroughbreds. Australian Veterinary Journal 100, 48-55.
| Crossref | Google Scholar | PubMed |
Flash M, Shrestha K, Stevenson MA, Gilkerson J (2023) National participation levels in the 2017–2018 Australian thoroughbred racing season. Australian Veterinary Journal 101, 265–274. doi:10.1111/avj.13242
Gibson MJ, Legg KA, Gee EK, Rogers CW (2022) Race-level reporting of incidents using an online system during three seasons (2019/2020–2021/2022) of Thoroughbred flat racing in New Zealand. Animals 12, 3028.
| Crossref | Google Scholar | PubMed |
Gibson MJ, Legg KA, Gee EK, Rogers CW (2023a) The reporting of racehorse fatalities in New Zealand Thoroughbred flat racing in the 2011/12–2021/22 seasons. Animals 13, 612.
| Crossref | Google Scholar | PubMed |
Gibson MJ, Legg KA, Gee EK, Rogers CW (2023b) Risk factors for horse fatality in Thoroughbred jumps racing in New Zealand. Journal of Equine Veterinary Science 129, 104897.
| Crossref | Google Scholar |
Hitchens PL, Morrice-West AV, Stevenson MA, Whitton RC (2019) Meta-analysis of risk factors for racehorse catastrophic musculoskeletal injury in flat racing. The Veterinary Journal 245, 29-40.
| Crossref | Google Scholar | PubMed |
Legg KA, Cochrane DJ, Bolwell CF, Gee EK, Rogers CW (2020) Incidence and risk factors for race-day jockey falls over fourteen years. Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport 23, 1154-1160.
| Crossref | Google Scholar | PubMed |
Legg KA, Gee EK, Cochrane DJ, Rogers CW (2021) Preliminary Examination of the Biological and Industry Constraints on the Structure and Pattern of Thoroughbred Racing in New Zealand over Thirteen Seasons: 2005/06–2017/18. Animals 11, 2807.
| Crossref | Google Scholar | PubMed |
Legg KA, Bolwell CF, Gee EK, Gibson MJ, Rogers CW (2022) Risk factors for horse falls in New Zealand Thoroughbred jumps racing. The Veterinary Journal 289, 105915.
| Crossref | Google Scholar |
NZTR (2019) NZTR Racing policy. Available at https://loveracing.nz/OnHorseFiles/RACING%20POLICY%202019.pdf [Verified 13 March 2023]
NZTR (2023) Rules of racing. New Zealand Thoroughbred Racing Incorportated. Available at https://nztr.co.nz/sites/nztrindustry/files/2023-06/RulesOfRacing_effective26June23.pdf
Parkin TDH, Clegg PD, French NP, Proudman CJ, Riggs CM, Singer ER, Webbon PM, Morgan KL (2004a) Horse-level risk factors for fatal distal limb fracture in racing Thoroughbreds in the UK. Equine Veterinary Journal 36, 513-519.
| Crossref | Google Scholar | PubMed |
Parkin TDH, Clegg PD, French NP, Proudman CJ, Riggs CM, Singer ER, Webbon PM, Morgan KL (2004b) Risk of fatal distal limb fractures among Thoroughbreds involved in the five types of racing in the United Kingdom. Veterinary Record 154, 493-497.
| Crossref | Google Scholar | PubMed |
Perkins NR, Reid SWJ, Morris RS (2005) Profiling the New Zealand Thoroughbred racing industry. 1. Training, racing and general health patterns. New Zealand Veterinary Journal 53, 59-68.
| Crossref | Google Scholar | PubMed |
Pinchbeck GL, Clegg PD, Proudman CJ, Morgan KL, Wood JLN, French NP (2002) Risk factors and sources of variation in horse falls in steeplechase racing in the UK. Preventive Veterinary Medicine 55, 179-192.
| Crossref | Google Scholar | PubMed |
Reardon RJM, Boden LA, Mellor DJ, Love S, Newton JR, Stirk AJ, Parkin TDH (2013) Risk factors for superficial digital flexor tendinopathy in Thoroughbred racehorses in steeplechase starts in the United Kingdom (2001–2009). The Veterinary Journal 195, 325-330.
| Crossref | Google Scholar | PubMed |
Rogers CW, Bolwell CF, Tanner JC, van Weeren PR (2012) Early exercise in the horse. Journal of Veterinary Behavior 7, 375-379.
| Crossref | Google Scholar |
Rogers CW, Legg K, Gibson M, Gee EK (2023) Commercial equine production in New Zealand 4: welfare implications of the New Zealand production systems. Animal Production Science 64, AN22424.
| Crossref | Google Scholar |
Ruse K, Davison A, Bridle K (2015) Jump horse safety: Reconciling public debate and Australian Thoroughbred jump racing data, 2012–2014. Animals 5, 1072-1091.
| Crossref | Google Scholar | PubMed |
Shrestha K, Gilkerson JR, Stevenson MA, Flash ML (2021) Drivers of exit and outcomes for Thoroughbred racehorses participating in the 2017–2018 Australian racing season. PLoS ONE 16, e0257581.
| Crossref | Google Scholar | PubMed |
Tanner JC, Rogers CW, Firth EC (2013) The association of 2-year-old training milestones with career length and racing success in a sample of Thoroughbred horses in New Zealand. Equine Veterinary Journal 45, 20-24.
| Crossref | Google Scholar | PubMed |
Velie BD, Knight PK, Thomson PC, Wade CM, Hamilton NA (2013) The association of age at first start with career length in the Australian Thoroughbred racehorse population. Equine Veterinary Journal 45, 410-413.
| Crossref | Google Scholar | PubMed |
