Grand National protest blamed for Hill Sixteen’s death as behind-the-scenes details emerge | Racing | Sport

The animal rights protestors who disrupted the Grand National have been blamed for the passing of Hill Sixteen by connections. The start of the race was delayed by almost 15 minutes on Saturday, with trainers and stable staff largely feeling that the action was not in the best interest of the horses.

Animal Rising campaigned outside of the gates of Aintree from 9.30am on the day, stocked with signs and flags calling for racegoers to reassess their stance on horse racing and protest for the sport to be banned.

The activists then slowly marched around the parameter of the course before attempting to break entry before the big race at 5.15pm. Six individuals made their way onto the track and glued themselves to fences – who were arrested and seamlessly removes by police -with others failing to scale the barriers.

It was ruled that the Grand National would be officially delayed as a result, with horses remaining in the parade ring until it was felt that the campaigners would not put the runners at risk. Twelve minutes later and the race was off, though the mood was dampened after Hill Sixteen fell at the first and was put to sleep due to the injuries sustained.

Though trainer Sandy Thomson believes that her stable star’s fall was a result of Animal Rising’s actions, with the extended parading period causing him to become distressed. She told the Racing Post: “It’s not good. He got absolutely hyper and we washed him off. They haven’t a bloody clue what they’re doing. He just hasn’t taken off at the first fence; he’s got so bloody hyper because of the carry-on.

“Unfortunately, it’s a statistic we’re all trying to avoid. He’s jumped around here twice and never had a bother. I don’t know when he last fell. I know how ignorant these people are and they haven’t a bloody clue. They just cause more problems than they ever solve.”