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There has been continuous debate whether race horses should run only with aluminum shoes. The protagonists of this move seemed to have gained an upper hand a few years ago in Bangalore but the authorities did not have the courage of conviction to enforce the rule in the face of opposition from professionals. Now the professionals themselves seem to be wary of using the steel shoes as indicated by the dramatic drop in their use. Last week’s racing saw 28 horses run in steel shoes but on Monday, the Derby day, we will see only five horses sport steel shoes in a well filled card of nine events. These horses belong to Narayan Gowda (2), Sirajuddin, Inayathullah and Sharat Kumar.
This sudden change in the mindset of the trainers has come about because last week, the authorities ordered the steel shoes of failed favourite Strength And Wonder to be weighed after the race for reasons best known to them. This type of scrutiny had never happened in the past. The rule book says that the weight of the shoes should not exceed 500 gms. The steel shoes of Strength And Wonder reportedly weighed about 900 gms. The Stewards have ordered an enquiry into the incident and trainer Neil Darashah is under pressure to come with acceptable explanation for using the heavy shoes.
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