Horse Racing Consultant Dene Stansall has prompted punters to think of the Cheltenham Festival from a different perspective before Gold Cup day begins.
Even though the Animal Aid campaigner believes horse racing should be banned, the former punter is certain that spectators can place better bets if they understand the horses running.
Stansall has made many media appearances across national and local outlets for many years, including an appearance on BBC Radio 5 to debate the Grand National in 2023. He has also addressed MPs and Peers in the Westminster Parliament, as well as guest lecturing to degree students who are looking for careers working with horses.
‼️ In My Opinion: The Grand National should be banned.
— BBC Radio 5 Live (@bbc5live) April 13, 2023
🐎 Horse consultant Dene Stansall believes that the biggest horse race of the year contributes to animal abuse.
🤔 What are your thoughts ⬇️
🎧 Listen back @BBCSounds 📲 pic.twitter.com/7pdUGFUUyy
Before he made the transition to horse welfare work, Stansall would regularly attend racecourses and place bets on different runners throughout the day.
“I was an average punter at one time. But I actually didn’t just look at the race. I looked at more than the race. I looked at what was happening to those horses, trying to understand what those horses were going through,” he explained.
“And I would say if you see a dead horse or a horse being whipped or a horse tiring, do you think about that horse after it has finished the race or during the race? Just stop to think about it.”
As thousands of punters flock to the Cheltenham Racecourse for the final day of glamorous action, Stansall states that they should stop, just for a second, to think about the industry and the horses as a whole. As it might indeed help them.
“Just think of it from a different perspective. And you’ll have a greater understanding of horse racing. And if you want to bet on horses, you would have a better understanding as well for betting if you actually knew how it worked. So you’ve got to understand the animal. It isn’t just about looking at a name on a piece of a race card and saying, I’ll bet on that, because you’re a fool if you do that.”
Keep up with all the action from Gold Cup Day at Cheltenham on Park Life Sport.
