AN initiative aimed at getting Irish jumps horses racing at an earlier age was launched on Friday by Horse Racing Ireland.

Starting next October, a series of three-year-old ‘Academy Hurdles’ will begin and these races will be confined to horses who have never raced under any rules previously, other than in Academy Hurdles.

These races will have a focus on jumping, with racecourses and distances selected to maximise the optimum number of obstacles in each race.

The most controversial aspect of Academy Hurdles is that the winners of these races will be qualified to run in bumpers and ‘normal’ maiden hurdles in Ireland, the objective being to encourage young National Hunt horses to enter training earlier but yet have access to a programme that does not require them to be rushed should they win a NH Academy Hurdle race.

“Britain already has a similar Junior Hurdle programme in place since 2022, whereby winners retain their novice status for an additional season,” said HRI in its press release. “The British Horseracing Authority has agreed that winners of these NH Academy Hurdle races in Ireland will be afforded the same level of protection in Britain, and Ireland will respect three-year-old Junior Hurdle winners with the same status as a NH Academy Hurdle winner when racing in Ireland. This means that winners of the NH Academy Hurdle races will be qualified to run in all British novice hurdles of which there are circa 360 scheduled each year.”

Each NH Academy Hurdle run will be considered by the Irish handicappers in assessing a horse for a handicap rating.

A number of these races will be part of the IRE Initiative which offers the winning owner (and possibly the owners of placed horses) a sales voucher.

Non-winners will remain eligible to be registered for a hunter certificate to run in point-to-points.

The HRI statement added: “These races are being introduced following significant industry discussion and debate around the quality of NH horses being bred and produced in Ireland, and their performance both on the racecourse and at key National Hunt sales.”

Trainer reaction

However, the Irish Racehorse Trainers Association [IRTA] has given the news a cool reception.

IRTA chief executive Feidhlim Cunningham said: “HRI are aware of our concerns regarding the conditions of these ‘Academy’ races. We encourage innovative thinking and at every stage we are here to help, but we also need to protect the reputation of Irish NH racing.

“We had a number of concerns around the conditions of these races. HRI did consult on this matter with a working group of 14 IRTA members. We absolutely encouraged a series that incentivised horses to begin their careers earlier but made it clear that we would not support the condition that winners of these academy hurdle races would retain their maiden status in National Hunt Flat Races and over hurdles. No other racing jurisdiction will respect that condition.

“We are of the understanding that HRI does not intend to provide additional funding for these races. The proposed format may also lead to operational difficulties for racecourses.

“We provided HRI with a detailed solution and a comprehensive list of recommendations that we felt would be a better starting point for these races. Ultimately those suggestions were disregarded, which is disappointing. We hope this series is a success over time and we are happy to be involved in a further review which will be required after the first year of its introduction.”

John Osborne, HRI’s director of bloodstock, said: “In recent years the advantages of starting young thoroughbred horses at an early stage have been identified in various studies and the data now available further supports this.

“Exposing horses to measured exercise at an early stage can have a positive impact on their performances and longevity in racing.

“There are many people in the Irish breeding world who recognised early the potential of this series and committed to working towards it, and Horse Racing Ireland will stay agile in ensuring that we do everything we can to make this a success in 2025 and beyond.”

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