Tag Archives: BHA

The British Horseracing Authority (BHA) has responded to an RTE Investigates programme broadcast this week which exposed animal abuse. ‘Horses: Making A Killing’ featured distressing footage from hidden cameras at Ireland’s only licensed equine abattoir in Straffan, County Kildare, exposing routine animal welfare abuse at the facility used by Shannonside Foods Ltd. “We share in the shock and dismay regarding …

The British Horseracing Authority (BHA) has announced that Julie Harrington will end her tenure as CEO of UK racing’s governing body at the end of the year. Harrington will complete four years as Chief Executive of the BHA, during which she led the organisation through regulatory transitions and significant changes to its operations and stakeholder relationships. As the former Chief …

The BHA Board has agreed that the Sunday evening racing pilot should not be resumed at this time, but that the concept should be ‘revisited when circumstances allow’. The decision follows a comprehensive review of the commercial performance data from recommendations by the sport’s Commercial Committee and Horseracing Industry People Board. Ffeedback came from racing’s workforce, including stable employees, jockeys, …

Across the board, betting stakeholders agree that horseracing’s offering must be redeveloped to engage with wider recreational audiences. Yet why has this simple endeavour caused such friction within betting’s value chain? SBC speaks to Fitzdares CEO William Woodhams on racing’s structural  issues and how a collaborative approach is needed to fix a generational challenge… A key topic of discussion at …

The British Horseracing Authority (BHA) has formed a new policy that permits an on-the-day switch between flat turf and all-weather tracks. This would occur when the original racing surface is deemed ‘unraceable’ and the fixture would otherwise need to be abandoned. The organisation stated that the policy will apply where a change of surface may be possible on the day …

The British Horseracing Authority (BHA) will closely monitor the forthcoming developments of the UK Gambling Commission’s (UKGC) pilot scheme and timeline to implement affordability checks. The governing body of British racing has issued its response to yesterday’s announcement by the Gambling Commission that it would roll out its pilot scheme on “frictionless customer affordability checks” from August 2024, initiating a …

New rule changes brought to UK racing will allow stewards to declare “a non-runner in any race beginning from the starting stalls.” The rule will be implemented from 1 May 2024 onwards, granting extended powers to race stewards to decide whether a participating horse has “been denied a fair start”. Granted by the British Horseracing Authority (BHA), stewards will be …

The British Horseracing Authority (BHA) has launched its latest campaign relating to horse welfare aiming to relax common misconceptions about the sport.  The HorsePWR campaign – short for Purpose, Welfare and Responsibility – provides detailed information about the lives of thoroughbred horses and the high welfare and safety standards at the core of British racing.  Kinross-based Jump Trainer Lucinda Russell …

British racing’s Horse Welfare Board has released the results of the country’s first Thoroughbred Census. It was in December 2023 that the BHA made its final call for owners to complete the Census before the end of the year, with the association ultimately receiving 8,256 registrations – of which 5,566 were previously unrecorded. Undertaken by Hartpury University, the census has …

The British Horseracing Authority (BHA) has invited people from ethnically and culturally diverse backgrounds working in racing to share their views.  A short survey form, funded by the Racing Foundation, has now been opened is completely anonymous and will run until 31 May 2024. The BHA is seeking experiences of the industry via the survey. BHA Chief Executive, Julie Harrington, …