Legend bows out
The BHA will make a decision this evening regarding whether racing can resume on Wednesday following a six-day shutdown due to equine flu.
Yesterday the BHA estimated upwards of 700 further negative tests were processed and they will continue to work through the thousands of samples sent from stables as the sport seeks a swift return to action.
Six cases, all from the Cheshire yard of Donald McCain, above, remain the only positive tests so far.
David Sykes, director of Equine Health and Welfare for the BHA, said: “The data is encouraging – the safety measures have helped to contain the spread of disease. However, it remains paramount that, for the sake of our horse population, we do not take any unnecessary risks.
“This is not a common cold, it is a highly contagious and potentially serious disease.” DOUG WHYTE, one of the world’s legendary jockeys, retired from riding in front of an adoring crowd at Hong Kong’s Sha Tin meeting yesterday.
South African Whyte, 47, won 13 consecutive titles in Hong Kong from 2001-2013.
But in seven rides on his final day he could not add to his 1,813 wins in the principality alone.
Whyte, above, appeared four times in the Shergar Cup at Ascot, leading the Rest of the World team to victory over a Great Britain and Ireland squad which featured Kieran Fallon and Pat Eddery in 2003.
At the beginning of this month, Whyte was granted his first trainer’s licence.
British champion Sylvestre De Sousa, who is extending his stay in Hong Kong until the end of March – partly due to the equine flu outbreak in Britain – rode a treble on the card.