Physiological demands of daily riding gaits in jockeys

Kiely, Michael; Warrington, Giles D.; McGoldrick, Adrian; O’Loughlin, Gillian; Cullen, SarahJane

doi:10.23736/s0022-4707.18.08196-3

Cited by 14 publications

(17 citation statements)

References 13 publications

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“…Due to their low workload, they are likely also to be inexperienced in race day riding, which has been linked to horse performance [21,22]. It has been identified that riding a race is more physically demanding than riding daily track work [23] and jockeys rarely participate in additional off-horse physical training regimes except as a measure to reduce weight [17][18][19]. The higher incidence rate for falls in the low workload cohort indicates that if these jockeys are not partaking in sufficient extra physical training, or competition-specific exercise, they may not be physically or mentally prepared to meet the demands of riding in a race.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The External Workload of Thoroughbred Horse Racing Jockeys

et al. 2020

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The objectives of this study were to quantify the external workload of thoroughbred racing jockeys in relation to their experience and racing performance. The number of rides of 786 jockeys and apprentices who rode in 407,948 flat and 13,648 jumps racing starts over 14 seasons were examined. Jockey work (ride numbers, seasons riding) and performance characteristics (race falls or wins) between cohorts with low (1–10), middle (10–200) and high (>200) numbers of rides per season were compared. Flat racing apprentices had more rides per season (25, interquartile range [IQR] 7–97 vs. 14, IQR 3–222, p < 0.001) but fewer rides per race day (2, IQR 1–4 vs. 4, IQR 2–6, p < 0.001) than flat racing jockeys. Flat racing jockeys in the high workload cohort (23%) were responsible for 83% of the race-day rides, riding in a median of 375 (IQR 283–520) races per season. These jockeys had half the fall rate (Incidence rate [IR] 1.0, 95% CI 0.9–1.1) and 1.4 times the success rates per 1000 rides (IR 98, 95% CI 97–99) than jockeys in the low and middle workload cohorts (p < 0.05). Most jockeys had light workloads, greater risk of injury and lower winning rates than the smaller cohort of jockeys with heavier workloads. This disparity in opportunity and success between cohorts indicates inefficiencies within the industry in recruitment and retention of jockeys. These data provide a foundation to further studies investigating jockey competition-specific fitness and its effect on both riding success and reducing injury risk.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The External Workload of Thoroughbred Horse Racing Jockeys

et al. 2020

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“…This position requires well-developed core strength and lower extremity power to maintain their forward propulsion. 3 Authors have also described cardiovascular demands of racing with mean heart rate (HR) mid-race ranging from 130s to 180s and peak heart rate ranging from 150s to 190s [3][4][5][6] (as described in Table 1. Three studies have estimated in-race mean maximal aerobic capacity (VO 2 max) ranging approximately 42.74 (±5.6) to 57.54 (±4.71) mL O 2 /(kg min).…”

Section: Physical Demands Of Horseracingmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…5 While these routine exercises place a certain physiological demand on the rider, it is suggested that merely completing these morning riding activities are insufficient to prepare jockeys to meet the demands of racing, and that additional exercise modes should be encouraged, including high-intensity interval training. 3,5,7,8 High-intensity interval training-particularly those routines that involve prolonged quasiisometric squatting positions with flexion of the hip and knee and culminating in short high-intensity pushing activities-would mimic the demands of riding and result in a sustained peak HR and serum lactate concentrations similar to those measured during a race. 5 Several recent studies have attempted to quantify energy intake in jockeys.…”

Section: Common Training Activities: Metabolic Demand and Energy Balancementioning

confidence: 99%

“…3,5,7,8 High-intensity interval training-particularly those routines that involve prolonged quasiisometric squatting positions with flexion of the hip and knee and culminating in short high-intensity pushing activities-would mimic the demands of riding and result in a sustained peak HR and serum lactate concentrations similar to those measured during a race. 5 Several recent studies have attempted to quantify energy intake in jockeys. A 2016 study of 20 male jockeys in Hong Kong estimated that jockeys consumed an average of 806 ± 256 kcal per day, a little over half of their resting metabolic rate requirement.…”

Section: Common Training Activities: Metabolic Demand and Energy Balancementioning

confidence: 99%

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Weight-Making Practices Among Jockeys: An Update and Review of the Emergent Scientific Literature

Ryan¹,

Brodine²

2021

OAJSM

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Numerous publications have described the behaviors employed by professional jockeys on a daily basis to achieve and maintain a minimum racing weight. This narrative review provides an update of recent publications that report on the impact of such practices. Although rapid weight-loss techniques such as calorie restriction and dehydration are commonly thought to be deleterious to jockeys, little evidence exists of enduring health consequences. There is evidence to suggest that jockey training behaviors and dietary choices are not aligned with optimum preparation for the physiological demands of the sport. Further research is necessary to better measure the health impact of jockey weightmaking behaviors; such data might guide reforms of athlete behavior and regulatory practices within the global sport of horse racing.

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“…The large numbers of jockeys competing for a fixed number of ride opportunities results in high selectivity for the high performing jockeys. It has been identified that riding a race is more physically demanding than riding daily trackwork [27] and jockeys rarely participate in additional off-horse physical training regimes except as a measure to reduce weight [6,7]. The short career length of the majority of jockeys indicate that they may not be physically or mentally prepared or able to meet the demands of riding in a race, thus not able to either meet the weight requirements, or perform successfully.…”

Section: Seasonal Ridesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Jockey Career Length and Risk Factors for Loss from Thoroughbred Race Riding

et al. 2020

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Professional thoroughbred racing jockeys repeatedly work close to physiological capacity during races, whilst maintaining low body weights, on a daily basis with no off-season. The effects of this on their career length is unknown. The aim of this study was to examine the career lengths and reasons for loss from the industry of 674 jockeys and apprentices who rode over 14 racing seasons and 421,596 race day starts in New Zealand. Descriptors were compared between jockeys in short (1–2 years), middle (3–9 years) and long (>10 years) career cohorts with descriptive statistics and Kaplan–Meier survival curves. The median career length for jockeys was 2 years (IQR 1–6). Long career cohort jockeys (11%) had lower carried weights (IQR 56–57 kg, p = 0.03), 40 times the median number of rides per season (248, IQR 61–434, p < 0.001), half the rate per 1000 rides of falling (1.1, 95% CI 1.0–1.2, p = 0.009) and 1.3 times the rate of winning (100, 95% CI 99–101, p < 0.01) than jockeys in the short career cohort. Jockeys who rode over 200 races per season had careers three times longer than jockeys with fewer races per season (p < 0.001). Half of the 40% of jockeys who failed to complete their apprenticeship were lost from the industry in their first year of race riding. In conclusion, most jockeys had short careers where the workload of a jockey and their ability to obtain rides had greater impact on career longevity than their performance.

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Physiological demands of daily riding gaits in jockeys

Cited by 14 publications

References 13 publications

The External Workload of Thoroughbred Horse Racing Jockeys

The External Workload of Thoroughbred Horse Racing Jockeys

Weight-Making Practices Among Jockeys: An Update and Review of the Emergent Scientific Literature

Jockey Career Length and Risk Factors for Loss from Thoroughbred Race Riding

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