Institute of Veterinary, Animal and Biomedical Sciences, Massey University, Private Bag 11222, Palmerston North, New Zealand.
Prev Vet Med. 2013 Feb 1;108(2-3):188-98. doi: 10.1016/j.prevetmed.2012.08.010. Epub 2012 Sep 4.
Few studies have investigated the effect of having interruptions during training on future training and racing performance in Thoroughbred racehorses. The aim of this paper was to investigate the effect of having an interruption before the first trial on starting in a trial or a race. A prospective cohort study was used to record the training activity of a cohort of Thoroughbred racehorses, over two racing seasons. Fourteen racehorse trainers recorded information on the distances worked at canter and at fast speeds (<15s/200 m) and provided reasons for horses not training, or for having interruptions (break from training). Trial and racing results were obtained from the New Zealand Thoroughbred Racing online database. A Cox proportional hazards regression model was used to investigate two outcome measures of performance: (1) time to the first trial and (2) time to the first race. The type of interruption that had occurred before the first trial was the main exposure of interest, and was grouped into: no interruption, voluntary (no known condition or disease present) and involuntary interruptions (due to the presence of a condition or disease). A total of 160/200 (80%) horses started in at least one trial and 100/205 (48%) horses started in at least one race during the study period. The median time to starting in a trial or a race differed significantly (p<0.001) with the type of interruption. The hazard of starting in a trial was lower for horses experiencing voluntary and involuntary interruptions (p<0.001) but there was no association with starting in a race, after adjusting for confounding variables. As age at the start of training increased the hazard of starting in a trial decreased. Horses accumulating longer distances at 15s/200 m had a higher hazard of starting in a trial, whilst horses accumulating fewer events at high speed and fewer trials had a reduced hazard of starting in a race. There was significant clustering at the trainer level for both the outcomes investigated. Interruptions to training had an effect on the time to, and hazard of, a trial but not a race start. The timing of these interruptions may have implications for future racing success and career longevity.
很少有研究调查在训练期间中断对纯血赛马未来训练和比赛表现的影响。本文旨在研究在第一次试跑前中断训练对参加试跑或比赛的影响。采用前瞻性队列研究记录了两个赛马赛季期间一组纯血赛马的训练活动。14 位赛马教练记录了在慢跑和高速（<15s/200m）下工作的距离信息，并提供了马不训练或中断训练（中断训练）的原因。试跑和比赛结果从新西兰纯血赛马在线数据库中获得。使用 Cox 比例风险回归模型研究了两个性能指标：（1）第一次试跑的时间，（2）第一次比赛的时间。第一次试跑前发生的中断类型是主要的暴露因素，分为：无中断、自愿（无已知疾病或状况）和非自愿中断（由于疾病或状况的存在）。在研究期间，共有 160/200（80%）的马至少参加了一次试跑，100/205（48%）的马至少参加了一次比赛。开始试跑或比赛的中位时间因中断类型而异（p<0.001）。经历自愿和非自愿中断的马开始试跑的风险较低（p<0.001），但在调整混杂变量后，与开始比赛无关。随着训练开始时的年龄增加，开始试跑的风险降低。在 15s/200m 处累积更长距离的马开始试跑的风险更高，而在高速处累积更少事件和更少试跑的马开始比赛的风险降低。在两个研究结果中都存在显著的教练水平聚类。训练中断对试跑的时间和风险有影响，但对比赛开始没有影响。这些中断的时间可能对未来的比赛成功和职业寿命有影响。
