Matamata RC 12 October 2013 – R 5 (instigating a protest)
ID: JCA16975
Code:
Thoroughbred
Meet Title:
Matamata RC - 12 October 2013
Meet Chair:
AGodsalve
Meet Committee Member 1:
ADooley
Race Date:
2013/10/12
Race Number:
R5
Decision:
Accordingly the protest is upheld and the amended placings are:
1st - LEICA QUEEN (No.5
2nd - GRACE WITH POWER (No.8)
3rd - MR KANTON (No.6)
4th - PROSPERO (No.4)
In conclusion we order the payment of stakes and dividends in accordance with the amended placings.
Facts:
This is a protest instigated by Mr B Jones (Licensed Rider) following the running of race 5, the Manco Environmental 1600. Mr Jones rode the horse LEICA QUEEN which finished second to GRACE WITH POWER, ridden by Ms D Johnson. The provisional placings were:
1st - GRACE WITH POWER (No.8)
2nd - LEICA QUEEN (No.5)
3rd - MR KANTON (No.6)
4th - PROSPERO (No.4)
The margin between the first and second horse was a short head.
Rules 642(1) and (2) provide that:
(1) If a placed horse or its Rider causes interference within the meaning of this Rule 642 to another placed horse, and the Judicial Committee is of the opinion that the horse so interfered with would have finished ahead of the first mentioned horse had such interference not occurred, they may place the first mentioned horse immediately after the horse interfered with.
For the purposes of 642:
(a) "placed horse" shall be a horse placed by the Judge in accordance with Rule 641(3) and
(b) "interference" is defined as:
(i) a horse crossing another horse without being at least its own length and one other clear length in front of such horse at the time of crossing:
(ii) a horse jostling with another horse, unless it is proved that such jostling was caused by the fault of some other horse or Rider or that the horse or Rider jostled with was partly at fault: or
(iii) a horse itself, or its Rider, in any way interfering with another horse or the Rider of another horse in a Race, unless it is proved that such interference was caused by the fault of some other horse or Rider or that the horse or Rider interfered with was partly at fault.
This Rule was read to all parties present and all parties acknowledged they understood the Rule.
Submissions for Decision:
Mr Jones told the Committee that his mount LEICA QUEEN was interfered with at least twice in the final 100 metres of the race by GRACE WITH POWER ridden by Ms Johnson. He told the Committee that if the interference had not taken place he believed he would have won the race by at least one length. The margin between the first and second horses at the finish was a short head.
Mr Jones referred to the available video films and identified his horse LEICA QUEEN, and GRACE WITH POWER in the home straight. He pointed out the mown strips on the track and used these strips to demonstrate that from about the 100 metre mark Ms Johnson, riding her mount vigorously, had pushed his mount outwards approximately 4 horse widths. He stated that he was challenging strongly for the lead at the 100 metre mark and that Ms Johnson made no attempt to stop her mount drifting outwards dictating the rightful line his mount was taking. He said that there was contact between the horses at least twice, each time unbalancing his mount, the final contact being 5 or 6 strides from the finish. Mr Jones stated that the rules stated that a rider must stop riding his or her mount and straighten it if it is racing erratically, and added that as he and GRACE WITH POWER were fighting out a 'head to head' finish, being forced off his line and having his mount being unbalanced by Ms Johnson's actions had cost him the winning of the race.
In reply to a question from the Committee Mr Jones acknowledged that he was able to continue riding forward during this time and to use the whip, but stated that his mount was never balanced and had been put off-stride by the outwards pressure from Ms Johnson's mount.
Ms Johnson told the Committee that her mount GRACE WITH POWER had been behind LEICA QUEEN rounding the home turn. Ms Johnson acknowledged that GRACE WITH POWER had 'run out' in the home straight but asserted that the worst interference had taken place right on the finishing post when the two horses had 'bumped'. She stated that Mr Jones had been riding his mount vigorously with the whip and never had to stop riding it until the finish. She stated that in her opinion her mount would have won the race anyway as the first contact between the horses was slight and the second contact was when the race was almost finished.
The Committee asked Ms Johnson to view the head-on film again and state how far GRACE WITH POWER had shifted out in the final 100 metres. She replied that her position was that the horse had moved outwards no more than 2 and a 'bit' widths, not the 4 widths Mr Jones stated. In reply to further questions from the Committee she stated that the final contact was closer to the finish than the 5 or 6 strides as stated by Mr Jones and in her opinion it was close to the finishing line. She added that Mr Jones had never had to stop riding his mount out.
Mr Price, trainer of LEICA QUEEN, stated that the first contact between the horses had been near the 100 metre mark and that GRACE WITH POWER had clearly taken LEICA QUEEN'S line and put the horse off balance. He said it was a 'heads up heads down' finish and that it only took one 'bump' to put a horse off balance. He added that GRACE WITH POWER had really 'come out' on his horse with about 25 metres to run and put his horse off balance again.
Mrs Zimmerman, trainer of GRACE WITH POWER, stated that she supported Ms Johnson's evidence and felt that most of the contact took place only a couple of strides short of the finish. She added that she felt Mr Jones had never had to stop riding his mount out.
Stipendiary Steward Mr Oatham told the Committee that from the 100 metre mark there was outwards movement by Ms Johnson and that Mr Jones was entitled to stay on his line. He said there was contact between the horses shortly after at about the 75-80 metre mark when Mr Jones was already being dictated to by pressure from Ms Johnson. He added that Ms Johnson's mount had continuously drifted outwards from that point until the finish. He said it was the Stewards' view that LEICA QUEEN had become unbalanced and had been taken out by at least 4 horse widths, and that Mr Jones' ability to ride his mount out had been compromised by pressure from GRACE WITH POWER. He stated that the worst of the contact had been about 5 or 6 strides short of the finish when LEICA QUEEN was clearly unbalanced. He said that given the margin was only a short head the Stewards believed that the interference suffered by Mr Jones was significant and that the Stewards believed the protest should be upheld.
In summing up Mr Jones stated that he agreed with Mr Oathams' submissions and had nothing further to add.
Ms Johnson said in summing up that she felt there was contributing pressure from the horse outside Mr Jones - the 3rd placed horse MR KANTON ridden by Ms A Collett - but had nothing further to add.
Reasons for Decision:
The Committee spent some time independently assessing the submissions of the various parties and reviewing the available video films of the race. We established that:
GRACE WITH POWER ridden by Ms Johnson has shifted outwards approximately 4 horse widths in the final 100 metres of the race and dictated the rightful line of LEICA QUEEN ridden by Mr Jones, forcing it over extra ground;
Contact between the horses has occurred;
Ms Johnson continued to ride her mount out and did not straighten it;
Although we accept that Mr Jones continued to ride his mount forward it was clearly disadvantaged;
The margin between the 1st and 2nd horse was a short head.
Therefore we are satisfied that LEICA QUEEN would have beaten GRACE WITH POWER if interference had not occurred.
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: bba35cc3366d15b74248c53358a92f9e
informantnumber: A2901
horsename: GRACE WITH POWER
hearing_racingtype:
startdate: no date provided
newcharge:
plea:
penaltyrequired:
decisiondate: 09/10/2013
hearing_title: Matamata RC 12 October 2013 - R 5 (instigating a protest)
charge:
facts:
This is a protest instigated by Mr B Jones (Licensed Rider) following the running of race 5, the Manco Environmental 1600. Mr Jones rode the horse LEICA QUEEN which finished second to GRACE WITH POWER, ridden by Ms D Johnson. The provisional placings were:
1st - GRACE WITH POWER (No.8)
2nd - LEICA QUEEN (No.5)
3rd - MR KANTON (No.6)
4th - PROSPERO (No.4)
The margin between the first and second horse was a short head.
Rules 642(1) and (2) provide that:
(1) If a placed horse or its Rider causes interference within the meaning of this Rule 642 to another placed horse, and the Judicial Committee is of the opinion that the horse so interfered with would have finished ahead of the first mentioned horse had such interference not occurred, they may place the first mentioned horse immediately after the horse interfered with.
For the purposes of 642:
(a) "placed horse" shall be a horse placed by the Judge in accordance with Rule 641(3) and
(b) "interference" is defined as:
(i) a horse crossing another horse without being at least its own length and one other clear length in front of such horse at the time of crossing:
(ii) a horse jostling with another horse, unless it is proved that such jostling was caused by the fault of some other horse or Rider or that the horse or Rider jostled with was partly at fault: or
(iii) a horse itself, or its Rider, in any way interfering with another horse or the Rider of another horse in a Race, unless it is proved that such interference was caused by the fault of some other horse or Rider or that the horse or Rider interfered with was partly at fault.
This Rule was read to all parties present and all parties acknowledged they understood the Rule.
appealdecision:
isappeal:
submissionsfordecision:
Mr Jones told the Committee that his mount LEICA QUEEN was interfered with at least twice in the final 100 metres of the race by GRACE WITH POWER ridden by Ms Johnson. He told the Committee that if the interference had not taken place he believed he would have won the race by at least one length. The margin between the first and second horses at the finish was a short head.
Mr Jones referred to the available video films and identified his horse LEICA QUEEN, and GRACE WITH POWER in the home straight. He pointed out the mown strips on the track and used these strips to demonstrate that from about the 100 metre mark Ms Johnson, riding her mount vigorously, had pushed his mount outwards approximately 4 horse widths. He stated that he was challenging strongly for the lead at the 100 metre mark and that Ms Johnson made no attempt to stop her mount drifting outwards dictating the rightful line his mount was taking. He said that there was contact between the horses at least twice, each time unbalancing his mount, the final contact being 5 or 6 strides from the finish. Mr Jones stated that the rules stated that a rider must stop riding his or her mount and straighten it if it is racing erratically, and added that as he and GRACE WITH POWER were fighting out a 'head to head' finish, being forced off his line and having his mount being unbalanced by Ms Johnson's actions had cost him the winning of the race.
In reply to a question from the Committee Mr Jones acknowledged that he was able to continue riding forward during this time and to use the whip, but stated that his mount was never balanced and had been put off-stride by the outwards pressure from Ms Johnson's mount.
Ms Johnson told the Committee that her mount GRACE WITH POWER had been behind LEICA QUEEN rounding the home turn. Ms Johnson acknowledged that GRACE WITH POWER had 'run out' in the home straight but asserted that the worst interference had taken place right on the finishing post when the two horses had 'bumped'. She stated that Mr Jones had been riding his mount vigorously with the whip and never had to stop riding it until the finish. She stated that in her opinion her mount would have won the race anyway as the first contact between the horses was slight and the second contact was when the race was almost finished.
The Committee asked Ms Johnson to view the head-on film again and state how far GRACE WITH POWER had shifted out in the final 100 metres. She replied that her position was that the horse had moved outwards no more than 2 and a 'bit' widths, not the 4 widths Mr Jones stated. In reply to further questions from the Committee she stated that the final contact was closer to the finish than the 5 or 6 strides as stated by Mr Jones and in her opinion it was close to the finishing line. She added that Mr Jones had never had to stop riding his mount out.
Mr Price, trainer of LEICA QUEEN, stated that the first contact between the horses had been near the 100 metre mark and that GRACE WITH POWER had clearly taken LEICA QUEEN'S line and put the horse off balance. He said it was a 'heads up heads down' finish and that it only took one 'bump' to put a horse off balance. He added that GRACE WITH POWER had really 'come out' on his horse with about 25 metres to run and put his horse off balance again.
Mrs Zimmerman, trainer of GRACE WITH POWER, stated that she supported Ms Johnson's evidence and felt that most of the contact took place only a couple of strides short of the finish. She added that she felt Mr Jones had never had to stop riding his mount out.
Stipendiary Steward Mr Oatham told the Committee that from the 100 metre mark there was outwards movement by Ms Johnson and that Mr Jones was entitled to stay on his line. He said there was contact between the horses shortly after at about the 75-80 metre mark when Mr Jones was already being dictated to by pressure from Ms Johnson. He added that Ms Johnson's mount had continuously drifted outwards from that point until the finish. He said it was the Stewards' view that LEICA QUEEN had become unbalanced and had been taken out by at least 4 horse widths, and that Mr Jones' ability to ride his mount out had been compromised by pressure from GRACE WITH POWER. He stated that the worst of the contact had been about 5 or 6 strides short of the finish when LEICA QUEEN was clearly unbalanced. He said that given the margin was only a short head the Stewards believed that the interference suffered by Mr Jones was significant and that the Stewards believed the protest should be upheld.
In summing up Mr Jones stated that he agreed with Mr Oathams' submissions and had nothing further to add.
Ms Johnson said in summing up that she felt there was contributing pressure from the horse outside Mr Jones - the 3rd placed horse MR KANTON ridden by Ms A Collett - but had nothing further to add.
reasonsfordecision:
The Committee spent some time independently assessing the submissions of the various parties and reviewing the available video films of the race. We established that:
GRACE WITH POWER ridden by Ms Johnson has shifted outwards approximately 4 horse widths in the final 100 metres of the race and dictated the rightful line of LEICA QUEEN ridden by Mr Jones, forcing it over extra ground;
Contact between the horses has occurred;
Ms Johnson continued to ride her mount out and did not straighten it;
Although we accept that Mr Jones continued to ride his mount forward it was clearly disadvantaged;
The margin between the 1st and 2nd horse was a short head.
Therefore we are satisfied that LEICA QUEEN would have beaten GRACE WITH POWER if interference had not occurred.
Decision:
Accordingly the protest is upheld and the amended placings are:
1st - LEICA QUEEN (No.5
2nd - GRACE WITH POWER (No.8)
3rd - MR KANTON (No.6)
4th - PROSPERO (No.4)
In conclusion we order the payment of stakes and dividends in accordance with the amended placings.
sumissionsforpenalty:
reasonsforpenalty:
penalty:
hearing_type: Protest
Rules: Rule 642(1)(2)
Informant: Mr B Jones - Licensed Rider of LEICA QUEEN
JockeysandTrainer:
Otherperson:
PersonPresent: Mr J Oatham - Senior Stipendiary Steward, Mr J Price - Trainer of LEICA QUEEN, Mrs K Zimmerman - Trainer of GRACE WITH POWER
Respondent: Ms D Johnson - Licensed rider of GRACE WITH POWER
StipendSteward:
raceid: ab00c73cdd3f1a1116f9cd665ab22cd9
race_expapproval:
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race_title: R5
submittochair:
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meetdate: 12/10/2013
meet_title: Matamata RC - 12 October 2013
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meet_chair: AGodsalve
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name: Matamata RC