British horse racing
Introduction
British horse racing is a sport that involves a tremendous amount of financial expenses and participation of authorities, general public and industry workers. The horse industry is widely varied and contributes mainly to the economy of the U.K. Equestrian sport is considered to be one of the most dangerous games (McCrory & Turner 2005). Horse racing involves more speed, stamina and power compared to other equestrian sport, and it tests the ultimate athletic ability of both the horse and the jockey
Jockeys are highly trained professionals that showcase the potential of a horse to win a race to the public. The professionals additionally communicate with the trainers and the horses’ owners to plan on how to get the best possible results and performance out of individual horses. The physical nature of the sport forces them to take part in physical exercises such as riding out, taking part in races and activities that boost their stamina outside of racing work. Racing is a high-risk sport that encompasses consequences such as dangerous falls, degeneration of the body and pain due to previous injuries. In retrospect, although horse racing is particularly popular in the U.K., it is also one of the most hazardous occupations owing to the incidences of fractures and falls experienced by jockeys (Hitchens, Hill &Stover 2013). Additionally, jockeys often experience pain way after their careers have ended as a result of the riding postures and overloading their joints during horse rides.
Working long hours in the saddle and maintaining the same position can be exhausting, it could lead to soreness and fatigue. Riding out and standing in the saddle can be detrimental to the jockey’s back, ankle, knee etc. due to being a travel sport. The posture during ridden work strongly affects the muscular-skeletal system, muscles and ligaments which run down the body to the limb can cause discomfort in the back. The force that a rider exerts on a horse has a direct influence on the horses’ experience of its mechanical load; this consequently affects its motion pattern (CABI, 2020). It is important to note that jockeys cannot be isolated from the movement of the mount that they are seated on during racing whether they adopt an upright or straight-legged position.
Jockeys use helmets and jackets as the primary protective equipment to protect their heads and chest. They do this because the pain could potentially reduce their quality of performance which ultimately affects the probability of success for individuals and teams alike. Equestrian sports generally involve a higher risk of falling and injuries associated with the horse. Due to the frequent physical contact with the horse, internal and external injuries are quite common among jockeys.
An Overview of British Racing
The governing body of horse racing in the U.K. is the British Horseracing Authority that is responsible for managing races as well as setting rules and standards to be used in the racecourse. By enforcing standards, they improve the welfare of the equine and care for the industry staff. The sport is supported by other racing-related association, trainers, breeders, staffs, the general public, resulting in the second biggest sport in the U.K. with a reputation for high-quality horses, positive management in welfare standards and a successful host for high profile races (Paul & Stevens 2020).
Physical demands of jockeys
Jockeys require to maintain physical fitness to minimize the weight the racehorse has to carry, increasing the speed by not putting additional pressure on the horse’s back. Jockeys adapt their posture with the shape of the racing saddle, maintain stability during fast travelling. The term ‘Martini glass’ shape riding style helps the rider reduce acceleration and deceleration when the horse is in uniform motion, maintaining a constant speed throughout each stride, reducing the workload for the horse (Kiely et al. 2020). The martini glass position requires more work in muscles in lower legs, back and arms to maintain the area during fast travelling, increasing the physical demand and anaerobic work. Anaerobic respiration occurs during high-intensity exercise supplying oxygen to muscles; however, lactic acid is a secondary production by anaerobic respiration, leading to muscle fatigue (Wong et al. 2020).
Galloping, bouncing motion of the leaping gaits that involves suspension and the jockey has to accommodate the motion to prevent the application of strong forces on the equine’s vertebrae, reduce risk of injuries of the equine (Gestri) In addition to their physical health, jockeys are at risk of suffering from mental health issues due to the strenuous nature of their work. Professional jockeys work tight schedules and have a very demanding occupation that requires them to be of sound mind and body (Losty et al. 2019). They often face stigma, and their mental health issues are often not highlighted like other professional athletes. It is therefore essential to raise more awareness on mental health issues that are likely to occur in the course of their racing careers.
National Hunt races require the combination to jump throughout fences throughout the race. However, even when the jockey’s position is already in an upright position, they are still required to be in a flexed position of the spine and limbs in greater angle and follow the locomotion of the horse in jumping to minimize the moment during suspension and maintain maximum speed; thus achieving a faster track record (McGuane et al. 2019).
Potential causes of pain
Jockeys have a higher percentage of lower back pain (Jackman et al. 2019); lower back pain can reduce the rider’s ability to synchronize with the horse’s movement. A study by Quinn and Bird mentioned how riding in longer stirrup length in a general-purpose saddle is less stressful and could reduce the chance of lower back pain. The racing saddle is usually composed with a flat seat with a very low pommel and cantle, and it’s designed for racing as it allows the horse to move as freely as possible during ridden work to improve performance, and also allows jockey to adopt the horse in different paces (Curry et al. 2016). The stirrup bar is positioned relatively close to the pommel, allowing the shorter stirrup length to adapt forward riding position during fast ridden work. Shorter stirrups allow greater flexion of the rider’s hip, knee and ankle joints (Hyun and Ryew, 2016) but also compressing the joints angle, and it puts the rider in a more horizontal position of the thigh which decreases the natural lumbar lordosis.
Maintaining good posture is an essential factor which leads to successful competitive riding, especially in racing when jockeys spend hours in the saddle producing potential winners. The horse’s way of going can determine the results, and rider crookedness can affect the direction of going due to the inability to follow the movement of the horse (Andrews et al. 2018). Jockeys may develop asymmetry riding to avoid pain, and ground reaction forces transfer to the rider and asymmetry in the forces could affect loading symmetry on the rider’s pelvis (Martin et al. 2017). As a result, the jockey could experience lumbar spine and lower back pain. Asymmetry could also be developed by performing repetitive tasks such as stable duties (Heleski et al. 2020). Overuse of the muscles creates strains and tension, leading to structural and functional damage to the jockey’s tissues (Shrager 2020).
How does pain affect performance?
According to a study by Lewis and Baldwin (2018), dressage riders who compete with existing pain harms performance. Pain can limit physical ability to perform movements, crookedness and stiffness cause limits in range of motion, reducing physical activity and affected performance (Lemon et al. 2019). Riding position could be affected due to the body compromising with the pain, reducing the stabilization of the pelvis and vertebrae
Inability in the rider increases the physical demand of the horse, balance and communication between horse and rider, affecting the quality of performance (Landolt et al. 2017).
Physical Therapy and Fitness
Physiotherapy, Chiropractic therapy, Osteopathic therapy, Acupuncture are therapies that have been used by athletes in all sports, known to be effective in pain reduction and restoration of movement (Poon et al. 2018)
Aim
The study is designed to investigate the prevalence of jockey riding out with pain, and if they perceived the pain has a negative effect on performance.
Objectives
- To investigate the location and factors that affect the jockey’s pain.
- Identify the concerns and barriers within the jockey and in the industry.
- To evaluate the importance of maintaining jockey’s physical health
Study design
A quantitative approach was used because of the experimental nature of the study. Quantitative research focuses on gathering data and generalizing it to explain a particular phenomenon that has been observed. There are only a few studies specifically in looking at pain in jockeys or longevity in their career; this study used an inductive approach to have a better understanding and to compare against current research, leading to a greater understanding of the subject. The study included both open and closed questions which were designed to collect information that was used to gather both qualitative and quantitative data.
The study emphasized on numerical analysis of data collected through a questionnaire. Qualitative research provided a larger sample of participants enabling more generalization of the results, that could be analyzed to determine an occurrence or similarity ( Castleberry & Nolen 2018). The questionnaire is based on the McGill pain questionnaire. Facebook, a commonly used social media by the general public, was used to administrate the survey in order to reach more participants from the industry. Higher number of participants results in higher completion rate; electronic questionnaires reach larger variety of participants.
Questionnaire design
The questionnaires were divided into different sections that totalled to 35 open-ended questions. The first section asked respondents to state their age, year in racing, types of racing, and necessary information about the respondents. This was particularly important for the analysis of the results. The second Section asked questions related to yard work hours and how that would affect the level of pain or if that is the reason for them in strains. The third section asked questions related to other fitness exercises they took part in other than riding out. The main article investigated their previous injury, level of pain, location and the cause of pain along with a section identifying the impact of the pain and how it affected their performance. The final part was about the factors that contributed to the pain they were currently experiencing or have experienced as well as the management strategies for dealing with the pain. Questions that require one or more answers utilized multiple choices, allowing the participants to select as many options as needed. Open-ended questions were used to enable participants to describe their symptoms and increase depth of understanding for the researcher. There were a few questions which used the Likert scale to identify the level of pain the respondents experienced and increase accuracy.
Data Analysis
Descriptive statistics will be used to repost percentages and frequencies within the date; it summarizes individual variables and finds patterns to determine an occurrence (Field, 2009). Frequency statistics count the number of times that each variable occurs, such as the number of males and females within the data. Frequency statistics and percentage statistics are used to represent most personal information variables.
Ethics
The participant of the study were all over 18, which eliminated most ethical concerns. The participants gave consent which was stated in the introductory stages. They were additionally informed that the questionnaire would be anonymous; the use and collection of data would also be confidential. The study involved the participants who were currently experiencing or have experienced pain in the past. In case the pain felt by the participants affected their performance, they were recommended to seek a doctor’s opinion before going back to work.
References
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CABI, 2020, “The Science Behind the Riding Style of Jockeys.” Available from https://www.cabi.org/animalscience/news/19761 accessed on 31/3/2020
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