Three horses were killed and another collapsed and died on the first day of the three-day Aintree Grand National meeting on Thursday. Two of the four runners in a small field for the Martell Cup, the big race of the day, were among the casualties.
There was a third fatality just over an hour later in the Foxhunters Chase, a race for amateur riders, and a fourth horse was killed in a hurdle race for young novices. The deaths looked sure to prompt further alarm among animal rights campaigners already staging protests this week outside bookmakers betting on Saturday's big race.
The first casualty came in the Martell Cup, won by ex-Cheltenham Gold Cup hero See More Business. Strong Promise, third in this year's Cheltenham Gold Cup, took a crashing fall five fences from home as he raced alongside the eventual winner. The horse suffered spinal injuries and was killed instantly.
At the end of the race Lake Kariba collapsed and died after passing the finishing post. Five horses fell at the first fence in the Foxhunters' Chase, raced over the Grand National fences, and Rossell Island, like Strong Promise, suffered fatal spinal injuries. Then in the following race, Architect, a four-year-old hurdler, took a heavy fall at the penultimate obstacle and was killed.
Two years ago three horses were killed in the Grand National a day after two other horses died at the same meeting.
