FEATURE
JOSH KADLEC-CAVANAGH Head of Data and Analytics
KATRINA ANDERSON Head of Sports Science
WILL BOURNE Bloodstock Manager
Kadlec-Cavanagh leads the team responsible for turning raw information into actionable insights. His work sits at the intersection of technology and horsemanship, helping trainers make better decisions through data they could never have accessed a generation ago. “I studied data science at university, and my work now involves a lot of coding, data storage, analytics – transforming raw data into insights for the wider business. “There’s a team of sports scientists and performance analysts giving input to trainers based on how horses are training, drawing on information from their wearables, which tells us about recovery, stride length and frequency. “Another data scientist and I run algorithms to create dashboards that give those performance analysts some more insight. That information then feeds back to Ciaron. “It might suggest a potential red flag in terms of a horse’s stride length, for example, that might indicate a horse is at risk of injury, whether it has done too much in training, whether it has picked up an ailment over time, or whether it is genetically predisposed to something. “It comes out in an image, and Leigh and his team send it to each owner to give them a visual representation of how that horse’s path to the major races will take shape. It creates visibility for owners, trainers and staff throughout our ecosystem.
Anderson bridges the worlds of science and training, working directly with Maher and the data team to design programs that are tailored to each individual horse. Her work has moved well beyond the wearable tracker that started it all. “We started collecting data on horses just using the wearable tracker. Now we are collecting data on horses’ trot-ups, using AI technology, monitoring nutrition and specialised feed, and running many research projects. “Josh’s team has built out the dashboards we use, compiling all the numbers to answer specific questions the trainers have – or ask for something we might be interested in – and then applying that from a training perspective. “Royal Merchant [the filly that won the Group 1 Goodwood in 2023] was an example of how we used sports science and data. She always seemed to struggle early on handling her work. We were able to modify her work, especially on the treadmill. She just continued to improve and won her maiden and then a Group 1 in the same prep. We were able to personalise her training specifically around her needs. “It’s always an open discussion with Ciaron, and if you disagree he will always want you to explain why – and sometimes he will come back and say ‘let’s try that’. The key is for everyone to be on the same page and all working in the same direction.’’
Bourne’s job starts long before a horse ever sets foot on a racetrack. His job is to find the horses that give CMR its edge at the top level – the weight-for-age performers and Group race contenders that show what the stable is capable of. It takes him around the world and keeps him on the move. “My job is primarily to manage owners and source top-quality horses. I spend a fair bit of time in the UK and am always travelling interstate. I don’t spend a lot of time in my own bed! “The easy part is finding them. The hardest part is buying them and then finding owners for them. It is a bit of a hamster wheel, but it determines our top quality weight-for-age horses – horses like Light Infantry, Duke De Sessa, Gold Trip, Sir Dragonet. “We would talk every day about buying a tried horse whether that be in NZ, Australia or Europe. The likelihood is that you buy only one out of the twenty you try, because the sale falls through, they fail the vets, or they want too much money.”
Fancy a Gallop? | 73
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