This post was updated at 8.15pm.
By HOLLY WAINWRIGHT
Did you put a bet on the horses today? Throw some dollars in the office sweep?
Did you dig out an old hat, or your kid’s tiara, pull out a party dress, get stuck into the champagne?
Of course you did. I did.
In the Mamamia office, like in so many others, we stood around the big TV, in our not-a-normal-Tuesday dresses with our hats and our warm bubbles in hand, and we jeered and cheered and teased each other about where we were coming in the Sweep.
And then.
While everyone was mentally tallying their winnings and the nation went back to the bar, a horse was dying a horrible death. This happened just moments after the end of today’s Melbourne Cup in amongst thousands of happy racegoers.
Today’s race that stopped a nation has now killed two horses.
Again.
Today it was Cup favourite, Admire Rakti , who won the Caulfield Cup just two weeks ago. And tonight news has broken that a second horse, Araldo, was put down after an aborted attempt to save a severed leg.
Admire Rakti in training.
Halfway through today’s race it became clear that there was something seriously wrong with Admire when he dropped back to last in the field– doubtless infuriating thousands of punters.
Admire Rakti was gasping his last breaths.
Admire collapsing in stall after the race:
The Japanese officials who travelled across the world with him to run in one of the world’s richest races were with him when he collapsed immediately after the race and died in the stalls.
Tarps were put up around the stalls:
The green tarps are up at Admire Rakti’s stall. @TomElliott3AW @3AW693 pic.twitter.com/AixNeOaFY7
— Tom Andronas (@tomandronas) November 4, 2014
Top Comments
Remembering...
its a fucking horse, big deal