{
  "id": 347898,
  "title": "Horse racing authority hit for pushing race under extreme heat",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/09/horse-racing-authority-hit-for-pushing-race-under-extreme-heat-347898",
  "topic": "science",
  "section": "Science",
  "published": "2026-08-09T05:42:02.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Korea Times",
    "slug": "the-korea-times-koreatimes",
    "url": "https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/business/companies/20260809/horse-racing-authority-hit-for-pushing-race-under-extreme-heat"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "The Korea Racing Authority (KRA) has come under scrutiny for continuing horse racing events in the face of extreme heat across the nation, prompting concerns about the effectiveness of the authority's newly announced climate measures. Civic activist group Jeju Vegan brought attention to the issue, highlighting that races were still taking place in Busan, Seoul, and Jeju Island on both Friday and Saturday, despite the ongoing extreme heat. The group expressed disappointment with the KRA's announced measures, which could involve canceling races during extreme heat but lacked specific temperature thresholds, making it challenging to guarantee the safety of the racehorses. Jeju Vegan pointed out that KRA organized races at LetsRun Park BusanGyeongnam in Busan around 1 p.m. on Friday, even as the city's temperature soared to 39.5 degrees Celsius, which is the highest temperature officially recorded that day. Similar conditions persisted on Saturday, with races held at LetsRun Park Jeju on Jeju Island and LetsRun Park Seoul in Gwacheon, Gyeonggi Province, at around the same time, despite temperatures reaching 36 degrees Celsius.",
  "summary": "The Korea Racing Authority (KRA) has faced criticism for continuing horse racing operations during extreme heat waves, despite recently announced climate measures for horses. Civic activist group Jeju Vegan accused the KRA of not fully implementing their proposed safety measures, which included canceling races during extreme heat. The group pointed out that races were held at LetsRun Park BusanGyeongnam in Busan, LetsRun Park Jeju on Jeju Island, and LetsRun Park Seoul in Gwacheon, Gyeonggi Province, all on days when temperatures reached around 39.5 degrees Celsius, with the city officially recording 36 degrees Celsius as the highest temperature. The KRA's failure to provide specific temperature thresholds for canceling races has made it difficult to ensure the safety of racehorses in such conditions.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "The Korea Times",
        "title": "Horse racing authority hit for pushing race under extreme heat",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/09/horse-racing-authority-hit-for-pushing-race-under-extreme-heat",
        "published": "2026-08-09T05:32:03.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}