Panel finds no single factor in horse deaths at Churchill Downs, more screening suggested
FILE - Jockey Flavien Prat, aboard Country House, center, looks on as jockey Luis Saez, right, aboard Maximum Security, crosses the finish line during the 145th running of the Kentucky Derby horse race at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky., May 4, 2019. Country House’s stunning elevation from Kentucky Derby runner-up to winner stood out initially because of the unprecedented circumstance in which stewards disqualified Maximum Security for interference after he crossed the line first. Then came the eye-popping payout of $132.40 as a 59-1 long shot. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum, File)
(AP) — A report from horse racing’s federally created oversight panel found no single cause of death among 12 horses at Churchill Downs this spring but recommends further action and analysis to mitigate risk at the home of the Kentucky Derby.
The report from the Horse Racing Integrity and Safety Authority said there was no link between Churchill Downs’ racing surface and the deaths or pattern in their location.
Tuesday’s report comes two days before the start of Churchill Downs’ fall September meet and follows the June 7 suspension of racing and shift of the spring meet to Ellis Park in western Kentucky.