A horse that collapsed on the racecourse following the Grand National has tragically died, the British Horseracing Authority (BHA) confirmed on Tuesday.

Celebre D'Allen, a 125-1 outsider in the prestigious British jumps race on Saturday, was pulled up in the latter stages of the race before collapsing. After receiving treatment on the course, the 13-year-old horse walked into the horse ambulance and was taken to the racecourse stables for further assessment.

The horse showed some signs of improvement and was moved to a nearby stud connected to his owner on Sunday, but sadly passed away on Monday. The BHA expressed their sadness at the loss of Celebre D'Allen and defended their health and safety processes surrounding the race.

Who was Celebre D'Allen?

Celebre D'Allen was a 13-year-old French-bred racehorse. He was owned by leading owner JP McManus and trained by Jonjo O'Neill, a prominent figure in National Hunt racing.

Before his Grand National run, Celebre D'Allen had a mixed but respectable career in steeplechasing, with notable performances in smaller races. He was a long-shot outsider in the 2023 Grand National, with odds of 125-1, but had previously demonstrated enough form to merit a spot in the prestigious race. T

Despite his age, he had raced for several seasons, and his participation in the Grand National came after a period of relative success.

BHA chief executive Brant Dunshea assured the public that extensive checks are carried out to ensure a horse is fit to race in the Grand National, including a review of veterinary records and assessments by a panel of experts. Dunshea confirmed that both the BHA and Aintree racecourse would analyse the incident and that a post-mortem would be carried out on Celebre D'Allen.

In a related development, stewards at Aintree suspended jockey Michael Nolan for 10 days after reviewing his decision to continue riding Celebre D'Allen after the horse’s condition worsened following the next-to-last fence in the race.

Backlash against suspension

Animal welfare activist Iain Green, director of Animal Aid, criticised the suspension, calling it inadequate, and questioned the decision to allow a horse of Celebre D'Allen’s age to participate in such a demanding race. The Grand National is widely regarded as one of the most dangerous horse races in the world, due to the size and nature of its fences.

In response to safety concerns, several measures were introduced last year to improve safety, including reducing the field from 40 to 34 runners and bringing forward the race’s start time.