One horse died and a race was cancelled during unseasonably hot weather at Cheltenham yesterday. With the temperature reaching 26C (79F) at the Gloucestershire track, Dame Rose collapsed and died after finishing fourth in the first race. The mare was deemed to have had a heart attack, but two other runners in the same race, Banjo Girl and Angels Antics, who finished third and sixth respectively, were found to be suffering because of the heat. After two more races passed without a problem, the decision was taken to abandon the stamina-sapping fourth race, a handicap chase over three and a quarter miles, because of the conditions. Simon Cowley, the stipendiary steward at Cheltenham, said: “We’ve been monitoring the situation throughout the day because of the…

Source: The Times April 19, 2018 16:18 UTC