Audit

In 2024 we conducted an audit into the publicly available information on horse falls, fatalities and injuries in Victorian jumps racing.

What we found is no surprise – serious animal welfare concerns, inconsistent and poorly reported data, and a lack of transparency, all of which paint a picture of an industry is unable to mitigate the inherent danger of jumps racing for the horses involved.

Key findings

The 2024 jumps racing season saw devastating outcomes for horses, with one of the highest fatality rates on record.

  • 1 in every 24 horses died during a jumps race
  • 1 in every 10 horse starts in a jumps race resulted in an injury
  • Approximately 1 in every 7 horses experienced a fall during a jumps race
  • Approximately 1 in every 5 horse falls resulted in death

Based on the publicly available information:

  • There has been no improvement in jumps fall rates in the last twenty years
  • There is no data for 2010, 2011, 2020, and 2021
  • Only 35% of complete Jumps Review Panel racing reports are publicly available from Racing Victoria
  • There’s no information on the financial or participatory status of jumps racing is available from the last 14 years.

Furthermore, the Racing Australia Fact Book stated jumps racing makes up only 1.66% of all thoroughbred racing in Victoria.

 

Read the full audit

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