The Cheltenham Festival
The Cheltenham Festival is held every March and is one of racing’s most infamous events. Every year since 2002, horses have died at the festival. A total of 64 horses have lost their lives at the Festival since 2000.
In 2018, seven horses died.
At the root of the problem is racing’s regulator, the British Horseracing Authority (BHA). It is responsible for race horse welfare but has failed to curb the number of fatalities in racing. 2018 saw a sharp increase in horse deaths in Britain, with the highest death rate since 2014.
It’s time for the BHA to be replaced with an independent body that would take meaningful action to stop horses from losing their lives.
Take action
More information
- Read our report: The Cheltenham Festival – facts and figures
- See the list of horses who died at each year’s Cheltenham Festival
- Visit Race Horse Deathwatch, Animal Aid’s online database that records race horse deaths in Great Britain
- Read our response to the industry’s review of deaths at the Cheltenham Festival