Horses being fitted with heart monitors to discover why they collapse in races

Marcus Armytage Mon, 1 December 2025 at 9:09 am UTC·6 min read British racing is fitting horses with heart monitors in a trial to find out why some thoroughbreds collapse and die during races. The first three horses were fitted with a “wearable” heart monitor in an under-the-saddle pad as the new equipment was trialled at Ascot last week.Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Exercise Associated Sudden Death (EASD) in racehorses is a rare occurrence. It affects 0.04 per cent of starters, of which 0.02 are believed to be heart related. It is often hard for pathologists to prove in a post-mortem, and is an assumption in the absence of any other signs. Recent advances in technology have...