Racing works with experts and stats to improve horses' safety

The British industry is using advanced statistical techniques to try to prevent falls, injuries and fatalities in racing

- LUCY ELDER

BRITISH racing has partnered with the Royal Veterinary College (RVC) to use maths alongside expert knowledge to help make the sport safer.

The racing risk models (RRM) project uses advanced statistical techniques to better understand risk factors for long-term injuries - defined as affecting horses for over three months - falls and fatalities.

Researchers from the RVC's epidemiological team are analysing data collected from race starts in Britain, including more than 400,000 jump race records going back 14 years.

This data includes detailed information about horses, racing history, trainers, jockeys and racecourses, plus any adverse outcomes in a race. The project has been expanded to include Flat racing.

Potential risk factors identified by the model span five general categories - horse, race, course, trainer and jockey.