Second horse Mindsmadeup dies at Cheltenham Festival 2022

A second racehorse has died after falling in the final race on the third day of the Cheltenham Festival.

The horse, called Mindsmadeup, was running in the final race on Thursday when it fell and had to be put down.

It comes two days after Shallwehaveonemore had to be put down after falling in the first race of day one of the festival.

A spokesperson for Cheltenham Racecourse said: "Sadly Mindsmadeup sustained an injury in the Fulke Walwyn Kim Muir Challenge Cup Chase.

"He was immediately attended to by our highly experienced veterinary team, but after treatment it was determined that it was necessary to put the horse to sleep.

"Our thoughts are with his connections."

Cheltenham Festival has seen the death of 71 horses since 2000.

Chris Luffingham, a director at the League Against Cruel Sports, said: "The death of Mindsmadeup today at the Cheltenham Festival – the second death in only three days – is incredibly upsetting for everyone."

The animal welfare charity spokesperson is calling for a change in horse racing protocol, saying "for any horse to lose it’s life in the pursuit of a ‘sport’ is an unnecessary tragedy".

He added: "But this sickening death toll points to the need for new and much tighter safety measures to be implemented – we are calling for an independent regulatory body to be created with horse welfare as its only concern.

"We will also be calling for the ban on the whip which forces horses to go beyond what they are comfortably able to do resulting in deaths, injuries and stress."