The BHA said no single factor was definitively responsible for the equine fatalities at the 2018 Festival and that nontrack factors—such as veterinary, participant, and race condition factors—could potentially be of equal, or potentially greater, significance than track-related factors. | Photo: Stephen Bowden/Cheltenham Race Course/Wikimedia Commons

On Dec. 12 the British Horseracing Authority (BHA) published its review of the Cheltenham Festival, following a rigorous process of data evaluation, consultation and review of video evidence, led by a dedicated review group and with input from external experts, including the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and World Horse Welfare.

The BHA announced it would review the 2018 Cheltenham Festival following the deaths of six horses during the jump racing event’s four days that of a seventh horse euthanized shortly after the Festival due to surgery complications.

The 67-page report includes 17 recommendations aimed at reducing the risk of injuries occurring during the Festival and at other Cheltenham fixtures and across jump racing as a whole. The full report is available at britishhorseracing.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Cheltenham-Festival-Review-2018.pdf