Breeding & Racing Magazine

European Breeders 1: Foal Dates Debate

The 2 main topics of discussion at the annual meeting of the European Federation Of Thoroughbred Breeders' Associations at Longchamp were "how to deal with foals born before January 1 & the increasing need to ensure an equitable amount of betting income for the thoroughbred industry," reported racingpost.co.uk. On foaling dates, "there was a feeling that regulation should move away from actual birth date (& the current January 1 cut-off) to covering date (for instance stipulating February 15 as the official beginning of covering season) & allowing any horse covered on or after this date to be registered as a foal of the following year regardless of its birth date". However, the breeders "agreed the responsibility to change the regulation was not, or only indirectly, theirs" & "came to a consensus that a horse's official age should be decided by racing authorities rather than by breeding committees or stud books".