Hi Everyone,
If you believe the winner of the 2018 Melbourne Cup is Cross Counter, you are absolutely wrong. Cross Counter may have crossed the line first in the race but I would hardly call that winning. No horse has ever won the Melbourne Cup. Instead they run round the track for the purpose of filling the pockets of the rich and callous. From 1 August 2017 to 31 July 2018, 119 racehorses died on Australian racetracks. Some of these horses were as young as two years. The video below from horseracingkills.com. tells part of the story of the horrific treatment of horses at these horseracing events.
The other part of the story is the number of horses that suffer and die before even reaching the track. In fact, many thousands of potential racehorses are killed in a year (Source).
Since 2013, the Melbourne Cup has claimed the lives of 6 horses. In 2018, Cliffsofmoher was the next victim of this vile exhibition claimed to be sport. With 24 horses running in the race, that is more than a 4% chance of dying.
Who are the real winners from Horse Racing?
The 2018 Melbourne Cup offered $6.2 Million in prize money (Source). This a big win for the racehorse owners, breeders and trainers.
In 2017, Australians bet over $125 million on the Melbourne Cup (Source). With the way betting and the odds are structured, betting companies would be even bigger winners than the racehorse owners and breeders.
The Government also get a nice big splash of the winnings from taxes. The point of consumption tax will be implemented in Victoria in 2019, so expect more Government support for the 2019 Melbourne Cup (Source).
What can you do?
If you bet on the Melbourne Cup or any other horseracing events, just stop. Without gambling revenue, the industry will not survive. If you really like throwing money away, give it to charity instead of funding blood sports.
I will leave with you this disgusting image of the Everest Race blatantly advertised across the Sydney Opera House. This race has an even bigger purse than the Melbourne Cup; this event is held in Sydney in October.
This advertising was called a ‘no-brainer’ by Australia’s appointed Prime Minister Scott Morrison.
For more information on Cliffsofmoher’s tragic death, read the article Melbourne Cup ‘tragedy’ as The Cliffsofmoher is euthanised.
