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Keagan Kirkby Dies After Fall At Charing Point-To-Point in Kent

Trainer Paul Nicholls has led the tributes to Keagan Kirkby, the amateur rider who tragically died after a fall at Charing point-to-point on Sunday.

In a statement released by the Injured Jockeys Fund, the 14-time Champion National Hunt trainer, with whom Kirkby was based, described Kirkby as “one of our best, hardworking lads.”

Nicholls said, “Life is so hard sometimes, winners totally insignificant compared to what has happened today. Sadly, Keagan Kirkby, one of our best, hardworking lads lost his life today riding in a point-to-point. All at Team Ditcheat are mortified. Thoughts with all his friends and family.”

According to the IFJ, the incident occurred on the second circuit of the final race, when the rider's mount ran out through the wing of a fence. Despite immediate attention by the on-course medical team as well as additional support from a 999 Helicopter Emergency Services crew, Kirkby could not be saved.

Kirkby joined Nicholls's operation in 2019 and had been awarded employee of the month in December 2021. He was also shortlisted for the Thoroughbred Industry Employee Awards in the Rider/Groom category for 2024.

“We are devastated to hear the tragic news regarding the fatal injuries sustained by Keagan Kirkby. Our thoughts are with his family and friends, and everyone at the yard of Paul Nicholls. The entire Racing industry will be in mourning at the loss of someone so young and with such potential,” said British Horseracing Authority (BHA) Chief Executive Julie Harrington.

“The esteem in which he was held is clear from the fact that he was nominated for the Rider/Groom category of the 2024 Thoroughbred Industry Employee Awards, and made it through to the final 10 in his category. The nomination spoke of Keagan's qualities as a thoughtful rider who develops a personal bond with his horses, understands their characters and adapts his riding accordingly, as well as his affable, helpful nature and popularity on the yard. We call on everyone to respect the privacy of Keagan's family and the Paul Nicholls yard.”

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Milton Harris Has Training Licence Withdrawn

Milton Harris has been ruled not to be a “fit and proper person” to hold a trainer's licence in written reasons issued by the British Horseracing Authority's Licensing Committee.

The Warminster handler was found to be in multiple breaches of his licence conditions, with the BHA citing his “misconduct in his dealings with others, including fellow licence holder Mr Simon Earle” and “concerns in respect of safeguarding arising out of MH's conduct with young persons employed at his racing yard”.

Harris, who had an enforced absence from the training ranks between 2011 and 2018 due to financial issues, also admitted to being in breach of conditions which were imposed on his licence upon his return. Harris reportedly failed “to be candid in his dealings with the BHA in respect of those breaches, particularly when the BHA was seeking to provide opportunities for MH to remedy those breaches”.

In the wake of the ruling, BHA director of integrity and regulatory operations, Tim Naylor said, “Racing is a sport that works hard to provide a safe and welcoming space for all and the ruling of the Licensing Committee in this case sends a clear message that those in positions of authority in our industry must act in a way that upholds these values.

“We are grateful to the committee for their time in considering this matter and also to those who came forward to share their experiences of Mr Harris and gave evidence at the hearing.

“Some of the details in the Licensing Committee's decision make for extremely uncomfortable reading. Mr Harris's behaviour over a prolonged period of time fell a long way short of what we expect of a licensed person and, as the committee found, would cause damage to racing's reputation if allowed to continue without repercussion.

“We are, therefore, pleased with the panel's finding that Mr Harris is not a fit and proper person to hold a licence.

“As is clear from the decision, the BHA's concerns ranged across a number of very serious issues. One of these concerns related to safeguarding. The BHA takes its safeguarding responsibilities extremely seriously and, as demonstrated by its bringing this case before the Licensing Committee, will do everything within its powers to ensure that those working in our sport do so in an environment befitting what should rightly be expected by them and, in the case of young people, their parents or guardians upon taking a job in the sport.

“The BHA recently published an updated Safeguarding and Human Welfare Strategy, which built on our existing policies and seeks to protect and promote the safety and wellbeing of everyone involved in the sport.

“As always, we would encourage anybody who feels they have been subjected to or witnessed inappropriate behaviour in our sport to contact us. The BHA's Code of Conduct clearly establishes the standards that everyone involved in racing is expected to uphold and we will never turn a blind eye to concerns raised about conduct which may fall below these standards.”

Harris described himself as “disappointed” by the verdict, with a further response planned in the coming days.

“I've just seen the decision of the committee and I'm obviously disappointed,” said Harris. “My immediate priority is to look after the horses, owners and long-serving staff here and in the immediate that will be my sole focus. I will make a statement [on the decision] in a few days' time.”

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Affordability Check Debate Will Take Place In Late February

After the required 100,000-signature mark was reached on a petition to review the proposed implementation of affordability checks, a debate on the subject will be held on Feb. 26, the British government's Petitions Committee announced. The petition was originally launched by Jockey Club chief executive Nevin Truesdale.

British Horseracing Authority (BHA) chief executive Julie Harrington said in a statement, “We are pleased that the important issue of affordability checks will now be subjected to proper levels of parliamentary scrutiny.

“The fact that our survey reached the required 100,000 signatures threshold in just 27 days is powerful testament to the strength of feeling shared by bettors over the proposed checks. This has today been recognised by the Petitions Committee.

“No other form of leisure activity is subjected to the kinds of restrictions being proposed by the Government and so it is right that MPs have the chance to forensically debate this issue.

“The BHA and other racing stakeholders will work with MPs on both sides of the House to ensure that the views of British racing and those who bet on the sport are properly represented within the debate.

“While we support the need to protect individuals from the risk of gambling-related harm it remains the case that millions of people enjoy betting on horseracing without suffering any ill effects.

“The BHA will therefore continue to push for changes to the Gambling Commission's proposals on affordability checks to protect the sport's financial future and limit the impact on racing bettors.”

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Joint Cooperation Committee Formed by Japanese, British and Irish Racing Industries

A partnership to encourage international initiatives and working practices between the Japanese and British and Irish horseracing industries was announced by the British Horseracing Authority (BHA), Horse Racing Ireland (HRI) and Japan Racing Association (JRA) on Friday.

The creation of the Joint Cooperation Committee is to serve as a formal platform for members within the British and Irish horseracing industries to engage with their counterparts in Japan via the JRA. It will consist of agreed representatives from key shareholders in the respective territories including the BHA, HRI, Racecourse Media Group (RMG), and principal courses like The Jockey Club Racecourses, York, Ascot, Goodwood, and Leopardstown.

The group's earliest groundwork includes a variety of schemes, and marketing and media initiatives to promote Japanese horses and connections travelling to Great Britain and Ireland, and vice versa by raising awareness of those markets among domestic participants, media, bettors, and fans. Another goal is to create a direct regulatory partnership which will perform its duties but not cut across pre-existing arrangements. Ultimately, the goal is to further internationalise the sport of horse racing and support the breeding industries.

“I am delighted that the horse racing organisations in Britain and Ireland with their history, tradition, quality and innovation, have now united to form the Joint Cooperation Committee with the Japanese Racing Association,” said JRA CEO, Masayoshi Yoshida. “It is an important and significant step for the JRA, and Japanese horse racing. We will be working together more strongly than ever before to achieve further development in all areas. I look forward to working hand-in-hand to create the future of horse racing together.”

Joe Saumarez Smith, chairman of the new Joint Cooperation Committee as well as the chair of the BHA, said, “We are delighted to be collaborating with the JRA and are hugely grateful for their significant support. The creation of this Committee is the next step in our relationship, as we further pool our knowledge and insight, and combine our considerable marketing and media assets. This can only lead to increased participation in each other's racing, resulting in deeper fan engagement, and increased and new revenues.”

HRI's CEO, Suzanne Eade, shared the enthusiasm of her counterparts for the future of the new committee. “Ireland looks forward to being a full and active partner with Britain and Japan in the Joint Cooperation Committee to share our collective wisdom and progress our shared objectives of increasing participation and engagement.”

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