PETA Wants Euthanized Filly's Jockey Barred
Tim Campbell
seeking the suspension of Eight Belles' jockey after the filly had to
be euthanized following her second-place finish in the Kentucky Derby
on Saturday.
Gabriel Saez was riding Eight Belles when she broke both front ankles
while galloping out a quarter of a mile past the wire. She was
euthanized on the track.
PETA faxed a letter Sunday to Kentucky's racing authority claiming the
filly was "doubtlessly injured before the finish" and asked that Saez
be suspended while Eight Belles' death is investigated.
"What we really want to know, did he feel anything along the way?"
PETA spokeswoman Kathy Guillermo said. "If he didn't then we can
probably blame the fact that they're allowed to whip the horses
mercilessly."
Eight Belles trainer Larry Jones said the filly was clearly happy when
she crossed the finish line.
"I don't know how in the heck they can even come close to saying
that," Jones told The Associated Press on Sunday. "She has her ears
up, clearly galloping out."
Guillermo said if Saez is found at fault, the group wants the second-
place prize of $400,000 won by Eight Belles to be revoked.
Saez, a 20-year-old Panama native, was riding in his first Kentucky
Derby. He frequently rides for Jones.
A call to the jockeys' room at Delaware Park, where Saez raced on
Sunday, went unanswered.
Eight Belles, the first filly since 1999 to run in the Derby, appeared
fine until collapsing while galloping out after the finish.
The letter to the Kentucky Horse Racing Authority also sought a ban on
whipping, limits on races and the age of racehorses, and a move to
softer, artificial surfaces for all courses.
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