Horse racing is a popular sport that involves competing horses and their riders, known as jockeys. Horses are typically trained to run at extremely high speeds, and many are raced before they are fully matured. This increases the risk of injuries and development disorders. Some of the most common injuries and problems encountered by racehorses include fractured leg bones, shattered hooves, ripped spinal ligaments, cracked neck bones, pulmonary hemorrhage (bleeding out of the lungs), and even death, from heart failure or a stroke.
A horse race is a competition in which one or more horses are ridden by jockeys and are pulled by a team of grooms on a flat course that may or may not include hurdles. The first horse to cross the finish line is declared the winner of the race. In some races, the top three finishers are awarded a sum of prize money. In most cases, the winner of a race is determined through a photo finish, wherein stewards examine a photograph of the final moment of the race to decide which horse broke the plane of the finish line first.
The earliest evidence of horse racing dates back to the Greek Olympic Games in 700 to 40 B.C. Later, the sport spread throughout Europe, Asia and the Middle East. Initially, it was a form of entertainment and wagering, but it eventually became a serious athletic endeavor.
There are several different types of horse races, but the most common is a handicap race. In a handicap race, the weight that a horse must carry during the race is adjusted according to its age. The youngest horses, two-year olds, compete with more weight than older horses. The handicap system is intended to provide a level playing field for all competitors.
During the race, jockeys use whips to guide their mounts around the track and jump any obstacles that may be present. Horses that are able to run at the fastest speed and jump hurdles quickly are considered fast runners. The faster a horse runs, the higher its chance of winning.
In addition to being dangerous for the horses, horse racing is also a physically stressful activity for the riders. The physical demands of the sport are so great that many injured and fatigued jockeys require medical treatment or quit the sport altogether. Many of the racehorses are also underfed, leading to poor health and performance.
Despite the industry’s claims that horse racing is a noble, natural and wholesome sport, the truth is that it is unequivocally unnatural and cruel. While many of the participants in the sport are crooks who dangerously drug their horses, there are also many people—many of them gamblers—who labor under the false fantasy that the industry is broadly fair and honest. And there are people in the middle—not crooks or dupes but still honorable souls—who contribute to an industry that is essentially corrupt and exploitative of its younger running horses.