Horse races have evolved over the centuries into a spectacle involving immense fields, sophisticated monitoring equipment, and enormous sums of money, but the basic concept has remained unchanged: the first horse to cross the finish line wins. As the sport of racing continues to evolve, the question of whether it can retain its reputation for integrity is becoming increasingly pressing.
When the stallion Creative Plan and five-year-old mare Medina Spirit died while under the exorbitant physical stress of running, it sparked a reckoning with how cruelly horses are treated in the name of the sport. But even as the race track industry struggles to recover from these incidents, the death of ten-year-old Eight Belles in the Kentucky Derby was a reminder that this is a business where horses routinely die, most often from heart attacks or broken limbs caused by the stresses of running and training.
The sport has a long and distinguished history, and it has been practiced in civilizations across the globe since ancient times. Archaeological evidence shows that horse racing took place in Greece, Rome, Egypt, Babylon, Syria, and Arabia. It has also been featured in folklore and mythology, most notably as the steeds of Odin in Norse legend.
Modern horse racing has evolved from a simple contest of speed and stamina into a massive entertainment enterprise that attracts millions of spectators and offers huge prize money. But despite the advances in technology and the ever-increasing stakes, the sport has lost its reputation for being clean and fair.
In the earliest days, races were match races between two or at most three horses, with owners providing the purse. Owners who withdrew forfeited half the purse, and eventually all of it, which led to a system whereby wagering was made against specific horses and the results were recorded by disinterested third parties, who became known as “keepers of the match book.”
By the time of King Louis XIV (1643-1715), horse racing had become more organized and regulated. A jockey club was established, and the sport began to develop a formal rulebook that standardized the races. The rules specified that horses must wear brims, and they were required to have their passports checked when entering the track. In addition, the king ordered that racing be conducted only on a flat course and he imposed extra weight on foreign-bred horses.
Today, Thoroughbreds are injected with race-day Lasix (labeled with a bold face “L” on the official racing form). It is intended to prevent pulmonary bleeding that hard running can cause in some horses. The drug’s diuretic function causes the horses to unload epic amounts of urine. The amount of water that a horse expels is so great that it can dehydrate them in a matter of minutes, and it can cause their blood pressure to drop to dangerously low levels. The practice is controversial, and many people believe that it is not safe for the horses. Nonetheless, the industry is moving to adopt new rules to make it safer for the horses.