A terrifying situation unfolded at Kanazawa racecourse in Japan when a mid-race floodlight failure forced jockeys to navigate in pitch-black darkness. The horses were turning for home on Sunday when the floodlights suddenly turned off, plunging the course into darkness. The jockeys had no choice but to navigate their way to the line with the help of just the grandstand lights. However, those lights barely illuminated the track, and the race was unsurprisingly voided after all the runners completed. The day's racing was also abandoned after the race.

Jockeys in the Dark

Jockeys were left in a terrifying situation as floodlights suddenly turned off mid-race, leaving them to navigate in pitch-black darkness at Kanazawa racecourse in Japan. Read on to find out more about the chaos that ensued.

Incorrect Timer Causes Chaos

An incorrectly programmed timer for the floodlights at Kanazawa racecourse caused the mid-race power outage. The timer setting for turning off all lights after the race was found to be incorrect, leading to the chaos and subsequent abandonment of the meeting. The Kanazawa Race Club issued a statement apologizing for the inconvenience caused.

Not the First Incident

This is not the first time a floodlight failure has led to chaos on the racetrack. Similar scenes occurred at Chelmsford in 2018 when a mid-week meeting had to be abandoned due to a power cut. Earlier this year, Windsor racecourse was plunged into total darkness within minutes after a passing storm.

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