‘A sad day’ – Nicholls hit hard by fatal injury to Kalif Du Berlais

The Lanzarote Hurdle card at Kempton Park on Saturday was marred by the death of three horses, including the Grade One-winning Kalif Du Berlais, whose loss Paul Nicholls described as “a real kick in the teeth” and a “sad day”.

Kalif Du Berlais – whose ownership group includes Sir Alex Ferguson – unseated Harry Cobden in the four-runner Coral Silviniaco Conti Chase and landed lame, with the broken shoulder he sustained proving untreatable and he was euthanised by the veterinary team.

Nicholls said: “It’s a sad day when you lose horses like that, it’s hard on the whole team. It’s a big kick in the teeth for everyone, the owners, the poor girl who looks after him – you hate to see that happen.

“He was just showing his class today, he jumped and travelled well and sadly now he will never be able to show the potential we thought he had.

“I can say as much as I like, but it’s just a shame for the whole team and a real kick in the teeth. Harry was extremely upset and is missing his ride in the last as he doesn’t feel great about it.

“He’s a big, bold horse who attacks his fences and those horses, when they do that, can end up having a bad fall.

“He was enthusiastic today and travelling beautifully and we’ll never know where we would have ended up, we’ve always had a lot of faith in him.

“These things happen sadly and we’ll have to try to pick ourselves up and move forward.

“These horses get the best of everything, there’s not much you can say to make it better at this point.

“It never gets any easier when these things happen and it’s a big old blow today.

“Thankfully the vets were right on the scene and they say he broke his shoulder, he’s gone there (to the fence) full of enthusiasm, winged it and then in the air changed his mind and landed awkwardly, it’s just sad.

“He’s won a Grade One and had a big future, there is no doubt about that, but we’re not going to know how big sadly.”

In the Coral “Daily Rewards Shaker” Handicap Chase Jonjo and AJ O’Neill’s Peso was pulled up on the flat with an injury that ultimately could not be treated, leaving racecourse vets with no choice but to euthanise him.

Harry Derham saddled Wertpol for the juvenile hurdle and the horse looked to be running a huge race before falling at the last and sustaining a life-ending injury.

Derham said on his X account: “An utterly miserable day at Kempton Park today losing Wertpol who we only had the good fortune of having in our yard for a short period of time.

“He was a bright talent who was fresh and happy doing his work every day, often playing around and expressing himself. He loved his job and I am so sad for his Heart Of The South syndicate, who are the most wonderful group of people.

“Racing at times can at times be a painful sport and today has been a tough day for a number of connections. A day to forget.”

A spokesperson for Kempton Park said: “In our second race of the day Peso was pulled up after sustaining an injury while travelling on the flat. He was immediately attended to, but the veterinary team determined that the best course of action for the horse’s welfare was for him to be humanely euthanised.

“In our third race Wertpol was immediately attended to by our team of veterinary experts after falling at the final hurdle but had sadly sustained a fatal injury.

“In race five Kalif Du Berlais sustained an injury and was quickly assessed by our veterinary teams, who determined that the best course of action for the horse’s welfare was for him to be humanely euthanised.

“All of us at Kempton Park care deeply about the welfare of all racehorses, as do the thousands of racing staff who provide them with world-class levels of care at home every day. Our heartfelt condolences are with the connections of all three horses.”

The British Horseracing Authority also issued a statement, passing on its condolences to all those involved with the three horses and adding: “The BHA will now analyse each of the incidents in detail through our fatality review process. This involves an in-depth review into every fatality that occurs on a raceday, with input from experts including veterinarians, racecourse teams and participants.

“At this stage there does not appear to be any common factor that can be attributed to these incidents, with each of the injuries different in nature and sustained in unique circumstances.

“But as is the case where there is more than one fatality at a single race meeting, the BHA will also initiate its additional review process to assess all relevant factors in conjunction with the racecourse and determine whether there may be any causal links.”