76 dead since 2000. How many more horses will die at this year’s Cheltenham Festival?

National animal welfare charity the League Against Cruel Sports is calling on the public to boycott the Cheltenham Festival in protest at its shocking safety record and the 76 horses that have died racing there since 2000.

Cheltenham Festival: a deadly tally

At least one horse has died at every single festival that has been held since the turn of the century and campaigners fear this year will be no different, with gambling profits being put before horse welfare.

The League is calling on people to not attend the festival, bet on it or watch the ITV coverage and the advertising set to run alongside it.

It has also lost faith in the British Horse Racing Authority and is calling for an independent regulatory body with horse welfare as it number one priority along with a ban on the use of the whip for ‘encouragement’.

Emma Slawinski, chief executive at the League Against Cruel Sports, said:

To have 76 horses dying at the Cheltenham Festival since 2000 is staggering and simply unacceptable if you are serious about animal welfare.

The profits of gambling companies and people’s entertainment are being put before the well-being of the horses who are being pushed beyond what they can safely achieve.

We are calling on people to boycott the festival by staying away, by refusing to bet on it, and by avoiding the TV coverage and advertising, which glosses over the cruelty of what is taking place.

Highland Hunter and Ose Partir both died while racing at the Cheltenham Festival in 2024, Malinello died in 2023, while 2022 saw four deaths – Ginto, Born Patriot, Mindsmadeup, and Shallwehaveonemore.

The use of the whip in horse racing was banned in Sweden in 2022 and can only be used to ward off a dangerous situation.

Stop supporting this

Emma added:

The British Horse Racing Authority needs to be replaced by an independent regulatory body that has horse welfare as its number one priority and that moves to ban the cruel use of the whip.

The tragic reality is that it is almost inevitable we will see more horses being sacrificed during this year’s festival, losing their lives while people in the stands, unaware of the cruelty they are supporting, check their betting slips and phones.

Featured image via the Canary