The National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA) has recently announced a new set of safety measures aimed at increasing the safety of horses in the US and ensuring that the industry is not dragged through the mud as it was when Eight Belles was ‘put to sleep’ after a terrible racing accident. While not a federal body the NTRA has massive influence in the sport and will be using this to ensure the new procedures are introduced across the whole of the US.
The new safety measures will see the strict certification of racing tracks and those not accredited, i.e. up to the standards demanded by the NTRA, will not receive an accreditation certificate. It is hoped that in time the accreditation system will see the general standards of safety at all tracks move out of the dark ages.
Many in the horse racing world will be relieved that the NTRA is taking such a proactive stance on the issue of safety because there were suggestions that the US government would get directly involved if no changes were made. When you consider the size of the US horse racing market it was always inevitable that changes would need to happen to recapture the trust of the public. This is a great move at a time when safety has been quite lax. When betting online horse racing make sure to know all about injured jockeys after all this ain’t bingo.