A horse has died on the opening day of the Grand National Festival at Aintree.
It has been confirmed that Envoye Special died having unseated his rider in the 4:05pm Foxhunters’ Chase. The horse was being ridden by Mr James King in the race which is for amateur jockeys only.
Envoye Special was assessed by vets on the track having come down during the race but sustained a fatal injury.
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Nine-year-old Envoye Special was trained by Keiran Burke and was running for the first time at Aintree, having most recently finished third at Wincanton at the start of March.
There were four horse deaths at last year’s Grand National Festival across the three days of racing.
In the last decade, British Racing has invested more than £20m into veterinary activities including research and education. The governing body also has self-imposed and enforced welfare standards which they say exceed national animal welfare legislation.
