Ashburton TC 21 July 2013 – R5 (instigating a protest)
ID: JCA13220
Meet Title:
Ashburton TC - 21 July 2013
Meet Chair:
RMcKenzie
Meet Committee Member 1:
KHales
Race Date:
2013/07/21
Race Number:
R5
Decision:
The protest was upheld and JEANS MATTJESTY was relegated from 1st to 3rd placing.
Consequent upon the relegation the amended placings for the race are:
1st - 12 Westburn Creed
2nd - 4 Chargedownking
3rd - 8 Jeans Mattjesty
4th - 7 Flyin Ryan
5th - 9 Tuscaloosa
It was ordered that dividends and stakes be paid in accordance with that amended result.
Facts:
Following the running of Race 5, Ashburton Trust Mobile Pace, an information instigating a protest was filed by Stipendiary Steward, Mr R A Quirk, alleging that JEANS MATTJESTY (R D Close), placed 1st by the judge, interfered with the chances of CHARGEDOWNKING (A P T Poutama), placed 3rd by the judge, when “JEANS MATTJESTY shifted ground outwards near the 100 metres onto CHARGEDOWNKING”.
Mr R D Close was present at the hearing of the information and he indicated that he was representing the connections of that horse in the protest hearing. As a Junior Driver, he was assisted at the hearing by Mr G D Smith, Licensed Open Horseman. Mr Poutama was assisted by Licensed Open Horseman, Mr R W Curtin.
Rule 869 provides as follows:
(8) The Judicial Committee may in addition to any other penalty which may be imposed pursuant to Rule 1003 thereof place any horse which:
(a) may have gained an advantage by any conduct or interference prohibited by any preceding provision of this Rule and/or
(b) may have interfered with, or whose horseman may have interfered with, the progress or chance of any other horse or horses –
immediately after any horse from which it may have gained an advantage or whose chances or progress may have been affected thereby.
The official placings were:
1st - 8 Jeans Mattjesty
2nd - 12 Westburn Creed
3rd - 4 Chargedownking
4th - 7 Flyin Ryan
The relevant margins were a head and a head.
Submissions for Decision:
Mr Quirk showed side-on and head-on -video replays of the final 200 metres of the race. He pointed out JEANS MATTJESTY in the lead with approximately 100 metres to run. CHARGEDOWNKING was racing behind it. He pointed out JEANS MATTJESTY shift ground outwards just as CHARGEDOWNKING was pulling out for a run, forcing the latter horse to check to go around it and race wider.
Mr Poutama said that his horse had “run in a little bit” prior to the incident. When he pulled the horse out, he said, Mr Close had “come out a little bit” forcing him to go wider. In reply to a question from Mr Quirk, Mr Poutama said that the interference had probably cost him 2nd placing.
Mr Smith, on behalf of Mr Close, said that JEANS MATTJESTY had run away from the horse on its inside, WESTBURN CREED (M J Williamson). CHARGEDOWNKING appeared to be hanging in and Mr Poutama had been attempting to angle it out for 100 metres. He was not on Mr Close’s wheel when Mr Close’s horse “ducked out”. JEANS MATTJESTY had just drifted out while CHARGEDOWNKING was looking for a run behind it. Further, he submitted, Mr Poutama had not had to stop driving his horse and had been able to activate the deafeners. It was not “clear-cut” that CHARGEDOWNKING would have run 2nd. The outward movement of Mr Close’s horse was minimal and Mr Close had taken immediate action to straighten it, Mr Smith submitted. He repeated that WESTBURN CREED may have contributed to the interference by drifting out in the straight by up to a cart width and CHARGEDOWNKING had also contributed by lugging in prior to being pulled out.
Mr Curtin said that CHARGEDOWNKING had lost “a bit of momentum” when he had to come out, but it was hard to say to what extent the interference had affected the final placing of the horse.
In summing up, Mr Quirk said that there was an obligation on JEANS MATTJESTY to maintain a straight course in the run home and the question for the Committee was whether the ground lost by CHARGEDOWNKING was enough to cost it at least second placing.
Reasons for Decision:
The Committee, as its first consideration, needed to find whether interference had been caused by JEANSMATTJESTY to CHARGEDOWNKING when the former shifted ground outwards near the 100 metres as alleged in the information. In this regard, the Committee was satisfied that, just as CHARGEDOWNKING was being angled out for a run to the outside of JEANSMATTJESTY, the latter did shift outwards in a quite sudden movement resulting in Mr Poutama having to check his horse to avoid JEANS MATTJESTY and was forced over extra ground.
The Committee found that WESTBURN CREED did not contribute in any way to the interference as suggested by Mr Smith.
Having found that interference occurred, the Committee had to assess whether that interference affected the progress or chance of CHARGEDOWNKING – in essence, whether, but for the interference, that horse would have finished in a better placing. The Committee was satisfied that this was the case. CHARGEDOWNKING lost significant momentum and some ground as a result of the interference and was closing quickly on the first two placegetters in the final stages, once Mr Poutama had the horse balanced. The margins of a head and a head were relevant to the Committee’s findings. The Committee was satisfied that CHARGEDOWNKING, but for the interference, would have finished either 1st or 2nd.
JCA Decision Fields (raw)
Dmitry: This section contains all JCA fields migrated from the raw data.
Data from these fields should be mapped appropriately to display amongst the standard fields above; please make note of any values below that are missing in the above standard fields but should be there.
hearingid: 552856b8fd4036973aaaa1043cb97ec6
informantnumber: A1130
horsename: JEANS MATTJESTY
hearing_racingtype:
startdate: no date provided
newcharge:
plea:
penaltyrequired:
decisiondate: 18/07/2013
hearing_title: Ashburton TC 21 July 2013 - R5 (instigating a protest)
charge:
facts:
Following the running of Race 5, Ashburton Trust Mobile Pace, an information instigating a protest was filed by Stipendiary Steward, Mr R A Quirk, alleging that JEANS MATTJESTY (R D Close), placed 1st by the judge, interfered with the chances of CHARGEDOWNKING (A P T Poutama), placed 3rd by the judge, when “JEANS MATTJESTY shifted ground outwards near the 100 metres onto CHARGEDOWNKING”.
Mr R D Close was present at the hearing of the information and he indicated that he was representing the connections of that horse in the protest hearing. As a Junior Driver, he was assisted at the hearing by Mr G D Smith, Licensed Open Horseman. Mr Poutama was assisted by Licensed Open Horseman, Mr R W Curtin.
Rule 869 provides as follows:
(8) The Judicial Committee may in addition to any other penalty which may be imposed pursuant to Rule 1003 thereof place any horse which:
(a) may have gained an advantage by any conduct or interference prohibited by any preceding provision of this Rule and/or
(b) may have interfered with, or whose horseman may have interfered with, the progress or chance of any other horse or horses –
immediately after any horse from which it may have gained an advantage or whose chances or progress may have been affected thereby.
The official placings were:
1st - 8 Jeans Mattjesty
2nd - 12 Westburn Creed
3rd - 4 Chargedownking
4th - 7 Flyin Ryan
The relevant margins were a head and a head.
appealdecision:
isappeal:
submissionsfordecision:
Mr Quirk showed side-on and head-on -video replays of the final 200 metres of the race. He pointed out JEANS MATTJESTY in the lead with approximately 100 metres to run. CHARGEDOWNKING was racing behind it. He pointed out JEANS MATTJESTY shift ground outwards just as CHARGEDOWNKING was pulling out for a run, forcing the latter horse to check to go around it and race wider.
Mr Poutama said that his horse had “run in a little bit” prior to the incident. When he pulled the horse out, he said, Mr Close had “come out a little bit” forcing him to go wider. In reply to a question from Mr Quirk, Mr Poutama said that the interference had probably cost him 2nd placing.
Mr Smith, on behalf of Mr Close, said that JEANS MATTJESTY had run away from the horse on its inside, WESTBURN CREED (M J Williamson). CHARGEDOWNKING appeared to be hanging in and Mr Poutama had been attempting to angle it out for 100 metres. He was not on Mr Close’s wheel when Mr Close’s horse “ducked out”. JEANS MATTJESTY had just drifted out while CHARGEDOWNKING was looking for a run behind it. Further, he submitted, Mr Poutama had not had to stop driving his horse and had been able to activate the deafeners. It was not “clear-cut” that CHARGEDOWNKING would have run 2nd. The outward movement of Mr Close’s horse was minimal and Mr Close had taken immediate action to straighten it, Mr Smith submitted. He repeated that WESTBURN CREED may have contributed to the interference by drifting out in the straight by up to a cart width and CHARGEDOWNKING had also contributed by lugging in prior to being pulled out.
Mr Curtin said that CHARGEDOWNKING had lost “a bit of momentum” when he had to come out, but it was hard to say to what extent the interference had affected the final placing of the horse.
In summing up, Mr Quirk said that there was an obligation on JEANS MATTJESTY to maintain a straight course in the run home and the question for the Committee was whether the ground lost by CHARGEDOWNKING was enough to cost it at least second placing.
reasonsfordecision:
The Committee, as its first consideration, needed to find whether interference had been caused by JEANSMATTJESTY to CHARGEDOWNKING when the former shifted ground outwards near the 100 metres as alleged in the information. In this regard, the Committee was satisfied that, just as CHARGEDOWNKING was being angled out for a run to the outside of JEANSMATTJESTY, the latter did shift outwards in a quite sudden movement resulting in Mr Poutama having to check his horse to avoid JEANS MATTJESTY and was forced over extra ground.
The Committee found that WESTBURN CREED did not contribute in any way to the interference as suggested by Mr Smith.
Having found that interference occurred, the Committee had to assess whether that interference affected the progress or chance of CHARGEDOWNKING – in essence, whether, but for the interference, that horse would have finished in a better placing. The Committee was satisfied that this was the case. CHARGEDOWNKING lost significant momentum and some ground as a result of the interference and was closing quickly on the first two placegetters in the final stages, once Mr Poutama had the horse balanced. The margins of a head and a head were relevant to the Committee’s findings. The Committee was satisfied that CHARGEDOWNKING, but for the interference, would have finished either 1st or 2nd.
Decision:
The protest was upheld and JEANS MATTJESTY was relegated from 1st to 3rd placing.
Consequent upon the relegation the amended placings for the race are:
1st - 12 Westburn Creed
2nd - 4 Chargedownking
3rd - 8 Jeans Mattjesty
4th - 7 Flyin Ryan
5th - 9 Tuscaloosa
It was ordered that dividends and stakes be paid in accordance with that amended result.
sumissionsforpenalty:
reasonsforpenalty:
penalty:
hearing_type: Protest
Rules: 869(8)
Informant: RA Quirk - Stipendiary Steward
JockeysandTrainer:
Otherperson:
PersonPresent: APT Poutama - Licensed Junior Driver, RW Curtin - Licensed Open Driver, GD Smith - Licensed Open Driver assisting Mr Close
Respondent: RD Close - Licensed Junior Driver
StipendSteward:
raceid: bfde0ddcf06887057fa7b862a08cf3bd
race_expapproval:
racecancelled: 0
race_noreport: 0
race_emailed1: 0
race_emailed2: 0
race_title: R5
submittochair:
race_expappcomment:
race_km:
race_otherexp:
race_chair:
race_pm1:
race_pm2:
meetid: 80bbc856dce1bf2785b49139e6c52716
meet_expapproval:
meet_noreport: 0
waitingforpublication: 0
meet_emailed1: 0
meet_emailed2: 0
meetdate: 21/07/2013
meet_title: Ashburton TC - 21 July 2013
meet_expappcomment:
meet_km:
meet_otherexp:
tracklocation: ashburton-tc
meet_racingtype: harness-racing
meet_chair: RMcKenzie
meet_pm1: KHales
meet_pm2: none
name: Ashburton TC