[Source: 1News]
Three horses involved in yesterday’s Melbourne Cup have reportedly pulled up lame following the event, including a previous winner of the race that stops a nation.
Twenty-three entries lined up in 3200m race at Flemington Racecourse yesterday afternoon before Irish galloper Without a Fight and jockey Mark Zahra eventually broke away to win by two lengths.
But further back in the field Alenquer and Right You Are, along with last year’s winner Gold Trip, pulled up lame The Age reports.
Right You Are failed to finish the race after jockey John Allen opted to pull up on the home straight. Vets confirmed soon after the seven-year-old Australian Gelding had indeed pulled up lame, meaning it had a limp.
“We settled in a nice spot, but we were struggling from a long way out and I pulled him up because he lost his action turning into the straight,” Allen said.
“I felt he may have just choked down. He was struggling to breathe but I jumped off him and once he got his breath back he walked off OK, so hopefully he’s OK.”
French entry Alenquer was in doubt for the race due to a stone bruise prior to the race but passed a vet check yesterday morning before competing. Unfortunately, Alenquer’s lameness was then found in the same leg that was bruised after the race.
Gold Trip, who finished 17th after winning last year’s race, had an issue identified in his front right leg.
The news comes after racing authorities strengthened Melbourne Cup protocols around horse safety following the death of Anthony Van Dyck in 2020 and since then, no horse has broken down in the race.
