No prize comes after a fall

Unsurprisingly there has been lots of friction among trainers, jockeys and owners since the new rule was officially confirmed by the governing BHA, and no prizes for guessing whether they all agree with the decision.

If you're watching a race and the horse you have selected to win is 20 lengths in front but falls at the last fence, you are more than likely going to hope the rider on board (or not, as the case may be) hops on and goes forward to win the race.

However, after approaching a near five-foot obstacle at close to 30 miles per hour, is it really fair for the horse, who could be suffering internal and external injuries, to have a jockey jump back on and continue galloping?

Similarly, even if the animal does not fall, but the rider is unseated after a blunder, is it right for the jockey to be expected to regain the partnership and continue as though nothing has happened, while he could also be suffering injuries which may not be obvious at the time?

Prior to the rule, jockeys were able to use their discretion whether to remount if such an incident occurred, but with adrenaline running high for both horse and human, perhaps it's a blessing in disguise that it is no longer the case.

I know it's easy to say in hindsight, but when Ruby Walsh decided to jump back aboard Kauto Star at Exeter in 2005 it wasn't perhaps the wisest of decisions.

The horse made another mistake at the last fence, was eventually beaten, and it was later discovered he had fractured a hind leg. He wasn't seen in public on a racecourse for a further 11 months and even got beaten after the lay-off. The rest is history, however!

I'm not suggesting that Walsh, or any other jockeys for that matter, don't consider the welfare of each horse, but just for the sake of winning a few thousand pounds the thoroughbred was asked to continue racing when he clearly was not physically fit to do so.

As for the jockey, maybe he'd banged his head as well, otherwise he may have decided to leave his winning chance for another day.

In a further twist to this story, an animal at Ffos Las on Sunday was remounted after taking a tumble when looking the likely winner, but was asked to carry on and ended up getting beaten anyway, all for the sake of securing Dh6,000 prize money.

Many of you will know I'm not usually a fan of all these often ridiculous "health and safety" measures, but in instances like this I believe it is indisputable that both horse and human should not be expected (or allowed) to continue racing just to put a few quid in someone's pocket.