An Aintree boss insists the course is not afraid to make changes after a horse died on day one of the racing festival. Dickon White, The Jockey Club’s Aintree & north-west regional director, says there are annual reviews on ways courses can be made safer for horses.
Willy De Houelle died after a horror fall midway through the Boodles Anniversary 4-Y-O Juvenile Hurdle yesterday.
Speaking to BBC Breakfast, White said: “Equine welfare is the number one priority for us at Aintree and across The Jockey Club. We’ll continue to look at ways of making racing here at Aintree as safe as it possibly can.
“We’re not afraid to make change. We’ll review every year and look at doing that. But horseracing is like the majority of elite sports – there is an element of risk to it. We’re very sad and [send our] condolences to the Ricci family. They had great success and have also lost a horse as well.”
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