Arcadius collapsed in the winning circle and died after winning the Iroquois at Percy Warner Park
Hall of Fame Jonathan E. Sheppard trained 8-year-old bay gelding, Arcadius collapsed after winning the Grade 1, $150,000 Iroquois Steeplechase at Percy Warner Park. The elation was soon followed by devastation as the Giant’s Causeway’s son collapsed in the winner’s circle, as he fell victim to a pulmonary aneurysm.
It was all good even after the race, as jockey Brian Crowley guided him toward the winner’s circle after guiding him to victory, but things took a terrible turn when Crowley unsaddled him, and right before everyone’s eyes, Arcadius fell on the ground.
Dr. Monty McInturff of the Tennessee Equine Hospital told the Steeplechase Times that "The horse ran a beautiful race, pulled up very cleanly and came back,” as he was cooling down after the race, he had a heart attack.
"When I got to him on the scene his heart was very irregular and he had a very weak blood pressure. We attempted to help the horse, but he had had a heart attack. It appears to be an aneurysm and he died very quickly and very peacefully. It did not appear to be anything that happened during the race."
Out of Farma Way mare Unify, this was Arcadius’s first race of the new season. He only raced twice last year.
He started off with a seventh place finish in the Grade 1 Grand National Hurdle Stakes at Far Hills on 22 October, 2011, and then finished third Grade 1 Colonial Cup Hurdle Stakes at Camden race course on 19 November, 2011.
His win in the Iroquois was the first since 25 September, 2010, when he won the Grade 1 Helen Haskell Sampson Hurdle Stakes at Monmouth Park.
The 2010 season, was the best Arcadius had in his career, with two wins, two second place finishes and a lone third place finish.
Though, the steeplechase events are constantly being monitored and they are the only sport which goes through rapid improvements every year to prevent deaths and injuries to horses and jockeys alike, but it was in fact an accident nothing has prevented, as Arcadius suffered a heart attack when he was cooling down after the race.
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