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Posted 12 Feb 2025

Posted on the 26th March 2008
A five-year-old novice horse, Star Of The Desert, died from neck injuries sustained in a heavy fall at Sedgefield racecourse yesterday.
The fatality occurred while Animal Aid was staging a protest at the course, which the national campaign group recently named as the most lethal in Britain. Star Of The Desert was one of 13 runners entered into a 2 mile 1 furlong novice hurdle race, and was being ridden by an inexperienced jockey. He fell at the fifth of eight obstacles. Because of worries about the condition of the ground, the decision to stage the meeting was not taken until nearly 10am on the day itself.
Sedgefield earns its ‘most lethal’ status as a result of an analysis of the first year’s data from Animal Aid’s Race Horse Deathwatch – a unique interactive website that records detailed information relating to all equine fatalities on British racecourses. A total of 161 deaths was recorded at 45 of the 59 British courses. Eleven of the deaths – the biggest tally – occurred at Sedgefield. Star Of The Desert becomes the twelfth victim.
Prior to the demonstration and the death of Star Of The Desert, Animal Aid wrote to Sedgefield management requesting a meeting to discuss ways of eliminating horse deaths and injuries at the course. Officials declined, stating: ‘Horse racing can be dangerous, whether jumping fences or racing on the flat. It is impossible to eradicate completely the risk to both horses and jockeys. None the less, every racecourse undertakes rigorous measures to ensure that the risk is minimised.’
Posted 12 Feb 2025
Please ask your MP to sign a new Early Day Motion (EDM) which calls for the government to implement its promised ban on snares as soon as possible.
Posted 05 Feb 2025