Letters | Why you should think twice before you bet on a horse in Hong Kong
Readers discuss the welfare of horses forced to race, rezoning proposals to allow taller buildings, and a television series created using AI
The 2024-25 Hong Kong racing season closed on July 16, and the new season began on Sunday. As in the previous year, there will be 88 race days in total.
Betting turnover for local events in 2024-25 exceeded HK$125.7 billion (US$16 billion), about a 3 per cent increase from the HK$121.9 billion recorded in 2023-24. Given the shrinking of the horse-racing industry worldwide, Hong Kong’s growing betting figures appear anomalous.
Looking at Australia, the United States and Britain, one reason for the sport’s decline is the growing recognition of the cruelty involved in horse racing. Veterinary experts have long pointed out that forcing horses to sprint at maximum speed causes multiple health issues, including musculoskeletal injuries and internal bleeding.
Going through the Hong Kong Jockey Club’s own veterinary records for the last 12 months, I found over 200 reported cases of fore or hind leg injuries and around 115 cases of bleeding from the nostrils or in the trachea.