International Jockey Health, Safety and Welfare

It’s on again, and it’s the COVID-19 delayed International Conference for the Health, Safety and Welfare of Jockeys that returns on Thursday, 28 September at Auteuil Racecourse in Paris.

Staged in conjunction with the 57th International Conference of Horseracing Authorities at the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe, its associated with the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities.

“The IFHA and the ICHSWJ are looking forward to this important conference,” said ICHSWJ Chairman Darragh O’Loughlin, “with improving jockey health, safety, and welfare is so vital for our sport.”

“This year’s themes will include concussions, spinal injuries and mental health, followed by a question-and-answer session as we all strive to expand our understanding of these topics.”

Firstly, it’s a review of Consensus Statement on Concussion in Sport and what it means for horseracing, with a discussion on concussion management across racing to deliver outcomes for jockeys amid increasing challenges and international movement of riders.

The panel discussion will be led by Dr. Jerry Hill, Chief Medical Adviser, British Horseracing Authority (BHA), and Dr. Jennifer Pugh, Chief Medical Officer, Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board (IHRB).

Next its focusing on the analysis and prevention of spinal injuries, and its Dr Daloni Lucas, PhD Candidate of Centre for Health, Injury and Illness Prevention in Sport (CHi2PS), University of Bath, who will discuss the latest research in this area, in particular spinal injuries and the role body protectors play.

The third session will examine the importance of mental health and the psychological fitness of riders, looking at different mental health perspectives and how cultural risk factors can contribute to the development of mental health symptoms.

And here its Professor Duncan Law, Consultant Clinical Psychologists, Changing Minds UK, Karen Lo, Sports Psychologist, Inner Edge, Hong Kong, and Dr. Ciara Losty, Sports Psychologist, Irish Jockey Pathway.

Following these three panel discussions the recently retired third-generation jockey Tom Scudamore, a Steering Committee member, will reflect on the content and on the work of the ICHSWJ.

For those wishing to attend, priority is given to members of the IFHA, while those outside the IFHA are encouraged to submit their request as soon as possible as space is extremely limited.

A free live video stream of the ICHSWJ conference will be available, and those attending remotely are to register in through the link provided, with the Conference beginning at 9:00 CEST (GMT+1).

The International Conference for the Health, Safety and Welfare of Jockeys is a committee of the International Conference of Horseracing Authorities the global leader of Thoroughbred racing,

It’s a forum to discuss and implement strategies to raise the standards of safety and the standards of care provided to jockeys’ and its vision has been to ‘create a safer and healthier everyday life for jockeys when they participate in the sport.’

The objectives of the International Conference for the Health, Safety and Welfare of Jockeys feature the raising of awareness of jockeys’ health, safety and welfare issues and to harmonise the standards and procedures throughout the world.

In also harmonising the collection of injury data, it provides a forum for the sharing of information, share research findings and foster collaboration, proposes strategies to deal with issues on a global basis and to set-up a more effective communication mechanism between countries.