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Cape Town - The Cape of Good Hope SPCA has expressed its unhappiness following SA Olympic and Paralympian star Oscar Pistorius' victory against an Arab horse - Maserati - in a "Run like the Wind" race on Wednesday in Doha.
Since news of the above challenge broke, the CoGH SPCA has been inundated with complaints regarding the manner in which the horse was ridden.
VIDEO: Oscar Pistorius 1 Horse 0
If one view’s the video one can understand why the general South African public is so outraged and disappointed with the participation of one of our local hero’s in this event. The horse it would appear was excessively, unnecessarily and cruelly whipped from start to finish (in fact even before the race started) whilst being held back by the jockey who clearly showed absolutely no consideration for the horses welfare or wellbeing.
Allan Perrins, CoGH SPCA CEO, commented: ”In our opinion, this incident has defeated the purpose of Oscar’s message and tarnished his otherwise wholesome image and I am almost sure that when he examines the footage he too will be horrified by the rider’s apparent indifference and would want to disassociate himself from the riders misbehaviour. If this incident where to have happened in South Africa, the rider, organisers and all participants including Oscar would have been charged with cruelty to animals and if found guilty have faced some very serious consequences - not least of all reputational damage.“
The CoGH SPCA presented Oscar’s office with an official Animal Welfare complaint on Thursday morning and Oscar promptly replied with the following: “I participated in the race in good faith as it was to promote abilities across sport and I was totally unaware of any alleged excessive force being used on the horse. I don’t condone any ill-treatment of animals and would always hope that a horse would be ridden in the correct way. Those who know me well are very aware of my well-publicised care and love of animals.”
The Cape of Good SPCA still would like assurances that the horse will be examined by an equine veterinarian to ensure that it suffered no lasting injuries.
HAVE YOUR SAY: Can Oscar Pistorius be blamed in any way for how the jockey treated his horse? Should Oscar rather have elected not to have taken part? Send your thoughts to Sport24.
Since news of the above challenge broke, the CoGH SPCA has been inundated with complaints regarding the manner in which the horse was ridden.
VIDEO: Oscar Pistorius 1 Horse 0
If one view’s the video one can understand why the general South African public is so outraged and disappointed with the participation of one of our local hero’s in this event. The horse it would appear was excessively, unnecessarily and cruelly whipped from start to finish (in fact even before the race started) whilst being held back by the jockey who clearly showed absolutely no consideration for the horses welfare or wellbeing.
Allan Perrins, CoGH SPCA CEO, commented: ”In our opinion, this incident has defeated the purpose of Oscar’s message and tarnished his otherwise wholesome image and I am almost sure that when he examines the footage he too will be horrified by the rider’s apparent indifference and would want to disassociate himself from the riders misbehaviour. If this incident where to have happened in South Africa, the rider, organisers and all participants including Oscar would have been charged with cruelty to animals and if found guilty have faced some very serious consequences - not least of all reputational damage.“
The CoGH SPCA presented Oscar’s office with an official Animal Welfare complaint on Thursday morning and Oscar promptly replied with the following: “I participated in the race in good faith as it was to promote abilities across sport and I was totally unaware of any alleged excessive force being used on the horse. I don’t condone any ill-treatment of animals and would always hope that a horse would be ridden in the correct way. Those who know me well are very aware of my well-publicised care and love of animals.”
The Cape of Good SPCA still would like assurances that the horse will be examined by an equine veterinarian to ensure that it suffered no lasting injuries.
HAVE YOUR SAY: Can Oscar Pistorius be blamed in any way for how the jockey treated his horse? Should Oscar rather have elected not to have taken part? Send your thoughts to Sport24.
