3 horses die in first 2 days at Belmont Park fall meet

NEW YORK — Three horses died during the first two days of Belmont Park’s fall season, mirroring the start and end of the summer meet at Saratoga Race Course.

According to the New York State Gaming Commission’s equine database, two horses died last Friday, opening day. Royal Inheritance collapsed and died during training, and Passporttovictory was euthanized after being removed from a race. Both were trained by Jeremiah Englehart.

Mo Moxie was put down Saturday by a veterinarian after the horse flipped while jogging and fractured a leg on the Belmont training track. So far this year, 25 horses have died at Belmont and four at nearby Aqueduct.

In the 40-day meet at Saratoga, 11 horses died during training or non-racing activities and four died during races.

The New York Racing Association said it is “working closely” with state regulators to review the circumstances of each death. NYRA operates Belmont, Aqueduct and Saratoga.

The sport has come under intense scrutiny since 30 horses died at Santa Anita in Southern California during its recent season.

The first horse to die at Saratoga while racing was Fight Night, who was euthanized on the track July 12. Two days later, Total Fidelity was put down after fracturing sesamoids during training. Saratoga’s final week had four thoroughbred deaths, two race related.