Aintree chief: Don’t judge us on just Saturday
Watch the Aintree feature at 10.30am on Saturday and 10am on Sunday
Aintree has asked not be judged on tomorrow’s racing but over the longer term, following the modifications that have been made to the Grand National course.
In August, Aintree and the British Horseracing Authority (BHA) published a joint-review of the Grand National course and its fences following the 2011 John Smith’s showpiece, in which two horses died.
In addition, consultation was conducted with the RSPCA and World Horse as well as senior trainer and jockeys, which resulted in the modifications, namely to fences one, four and six.
Talking to Graham Cunningham in a Racing UK feature that will be aired at 10.30am on Saturday, Aintree Managing Director Julian Thick said: “This is a case of evolution and should be placed in the context of the journey the Grand National has taken through its long history.
“We don’t want be judged on Saturday afternoon but over the longer term. We have made sensitive changes for the good of the race while not taking away from its essence or the challenge it presents.”
“It is always desperately sad to lose horses and we take safety and welfare very seriously. We review every race every year at Aintree, but the difference this year was that we were joined by BHA.
“Our review went back 20 years and took in not just the national but all the races over the fences. Only one fence is being reduced and the majority of work has been done to the landing sides.”
Thick accepts that lessons have been learned from last year’s race, especially its immediate aftermath.
“Some of the positive welfare actions, such as dismounting, emergency precautionary veterinary care, and water to cool the horses down, was misconstrued.
“We need to improve our communication and explain that these are positive steps, especially for those watching on the BBC, who might not have understood what was going on.
“We have introduced new procedures this year, such as a new off-course area for horses to be cooled down.”
Moving on to the fences themselves, Thick explained why they chose not to alter the run-in to the first fence or limit the numbers.
He continued: “The Grand National course is wide and has plenty of racing room for 40 runners. Very few horses were being crowded so we were happy to continue with the number of runners.
“The distance is unusually long to the first, but we chose not alter it due to topography issues, such as the position of the Melling Road, and we spoke to those who had trained horses and ridden in the race and they felt the distance allowed the horses plenty of time to sort themselves out before the fence.
“Evidence suggested that horses were tending to over-jump at the first and horses were being caught out by the landing side, so we reduced the drop.
“The fourth is a fence we wouldn’t have identified without this comprehensive review. We made a small reduction in height and as with all the fences, we have introduced 14inch high toe boards to make it more inviting to jump.
“Becher’s Brook is one of the most iconic sights in sport so we were keen to modify the fence while retaining its essence.
“We made a five-inch reduction in drop across the whole width of the fence, and a lesser drop on the outside and more of a drop on the inside.”
Watch the Aintree feature at 10.30am on Saturday and 10am on Sunday
2 December 2011
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