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McCririck condemns whipping of race horses
16 March 2006 Thumbs up to John McCririck, the flamboyant and outspoken racing pundit and former Celebrity Big Brother housemate. Speaking on RTE's Tubridy Show on the eve of Cheltenham, he roundly condemned the use of the whip in horse racing and called on the people of Ireland - "the most horse loving nation on earth" - to "put a stop to this obscenity once and for all". His appeal was greeted with loud applause from the studio audience. McCririck said: "I am totally opposed to the use of the whip. Why is it that only in racing can we beat animals in the name of sport? It is unacceptable. Racing will go on without the whip. Hitting these beautiful animals - many of which are called cowards but autopsy shows something wrong with their hearts or whatever - hitting these animals is unacceptable. "We're trying to stop it [Loud applause from audience]. But it is up to you at home, you in the audience, people in Ireland - the most horse loving nation on earth. It is up to you to put a stop to this obscenity once and for all. Racing can't continue with the beating of horses!" Mr McCririck's opposition to race horse whipping has also been documented on the Channel 4 Racing website. In response to the question, "If you could change anything in racing, what would it be?", he replies: "Stop whipping animals in the name of sport."
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