Horse racing industry and concerns
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Horse racing is a major sporting in many countries in the world and has over the years developed into a flourishing industry. Moreover, there are many forms of horse racing. So, while thoroughbred horse racing is a well-known form and extremely popular, in eastern regions of United States harness racing is much cheered and in the western regions, particularly Florida, quarter horse racing is more in style.
As economic activity centered around horse racing has increased and given the industry a huge boost, it has become an item of sports betting. Betting and horse racing industry are often talked of in the same breath. As a matter of fact, in many horse racing venues, there are gambling stations where anyone can lay a wager on the outcome of a race and make a winning. Although in some places, betting on horse racing is illegal, where it is allowed a separate industry has grown to satisfy gambling instincts of players. One such popular form of gambling on horse racing is Parimutuel betting, where the persons who wish to stake money make a common fund and the winners get a proportional payout after a certain deduction is made from the money pool.
The horse racing industry is, however, not without its share of concerns.
Some groups of people see using a horse for racing as a form of cruelty towards the animal and indeed combined with betting, the horse racing industry is not always free from guilt in such allegations. Another concern for the horse racing industry is the fatality rate, as both the horse and the jockey run the risk of crippling injuries and even death. According to a 1984 study on US sports, horse racing has fatality count of 128, which is highest among several adventurous sports like sky diving, hang gliding, mountaineering, scuba diving, motorcycle racing etc.
