Whip rule altered in Britain

Jockeys will still be allowed to use the whip in the forehand position under revised changes to riding rules – but the number of times a rider may strike his mount will be further reduced from February.

The British Horseracing Authority set out a raft of alterations to the rules in the summer, with jockeys only allowed to use the whip in the backhand position and serious breaches of the regulations to result in disqualification from races and possible 28-day bans for riders in major races.

However, a number of riders registered their disquiet over the proposed changes last month, particularly the implementation of the backhand-only position, with the BHA announcing further consultation to "explore options that address the concerns being raised".

That further discussion has led to another set of revisions, with the backhand-only edict rescinded, although that change has resulted in a reduction to permitted strikes in a race.

Flat jockeys had been allowed to use their whip a maximum of seven times, with jump jockeys allowed eight instances. Both numbers have been reduced by one under the new regulations.

Under the initial set of a revisions, a jump jockey who used their whip 12 or more times – with 11 strikes or more for Flat jockeys – in any race could be disqualified, with those numbers also reduced to 11 and 10 respectively.

Following further consultation it was felt that jockeys who had suffered from shoulder or collarbone injuries may find use of the whip solely in the backhand position more challenging.

The removal of "discretion" by the stewards has also been announced, meaning every use of the whip shall count towards the threshold unless clearly used for safety purposes.

Penalties for going above the new thresholds will