Houblon Des Obeaux: When "old friends" die

As in the weeks before, a preview of the race of the week in England should appear here. But after the events of last weekend I don't feel like it. Because it was a sad race weekend. Nevertheless, there is a small outlook on the top events of the coming weekend.

So let's start with Houblon Des Obeaux: The twelve-year-old gelding collapsed when he reached the twelfth obstacle of the London Handicap, the last race of the Tingle Creek Meeting in Sandown. The veterinarians diagnosed heart failure. What makes the loss so painful is that he was a horse which has accompanied the columnist for years. Like many other chasers and hurdlers. 

"He had been with us for nine years and was a big favourite in the stable," said a visibly agitated coach Venetia Williams after the race. In November Houblon Des Obeaux won in Sandown, where he often ran very well - until this fatal accident. If he had his favourite soft ground, "he was a great warrior who would never gone without a real fight. "

It was a Saturday to forget: There were some spectacular crashes in England and Ireland, most of them fortunately went off lightly. But with It's Jennifer another horse died after a fall at the event in Aintree.

Cruelty to animals looks different

Now horses injured themselves not only on the race course, but also in training, on the grass or in the stable. A broken leg is now unfortunately a death sentence for most horses. I don't share the idea that jump races are too dangerous at all. Horses in this sport often have a long career, Houblon Des Obeaux was twelve years. Such a sporting career over many years is also a form of sustainability.

Animal rights activists who want to ban horse racing because of alleged cruelty to animals should rather focus for example on pigs and chickens, which have a much worse life (if you can call it that at all) and end up as cheap meat in the supermarkets.

Yet the events have pretty much spoiled my mood. It used to be that way, for example when Starchitect collapsed and died leading at Cheltenham in December 2017. Or the Grand National 2012, when two horses died and the race was not only heavily criticized by animal rights activists. Afterwards the conditions were changed, the Grand National nowadays is not as demanding on horses and riders.

Cheltenham on Saturday  

But life goes on. The race of the day on Saturday is the Caspar Caviar Gold Cup in Cheltenham, a chase that is difficult to decipher every year. Maybe Cepage can ease the pain of trainer Williams a little, but I hope Brelan D'As finally wins a big handicap. Another highlight is the International Hurdle (Group 2, 3382 m) with a guest from Australia. But Big Blue is only a big outsider. Favourite is Pentland Hills, a highly talented horse trained by Nicky Henderson. But his odds are too low.