Taranaki RI 27 December 2017 – R 6 – Chair, Mr P Williams
ID: JCA11609
Code:
Thoroughbred
Meet Title:
Taranaki RC - 27 December 2017
Meet Chair:
PWilliams
Meet Committee Member 1:
TBird
Race Date:
2017/12/27
Race Number:
R6
Decision:
As Mr Elliot admitted the breach the charge was found proved.
Penalty:
Mr Elliot is suspended from the close of racing on 3 January 2018 to the close of racing on 13 January 2018.
Facts:
Following the running of race 6, the “Farmlands 1600”, Information A9216 was filed by Stipendiary Steward Mr D Balcombe under Rule 638(3)(b)(ii). The information stated “that R Elliot used his whip excessively prior to the 100m on “Staccato”.
Mr Elliot signed the Information admitting the breach and at the beginning of the hearing confirmed that was correct and also that he understood the Rule under which he was charged. He also confirmed he was aware of the new Guidelines regarding acceptable use of the whip effective from 1 August 2017. Mr Elliot was assisted during the hearing by senior rider Mr Bradley.
Rule 638(3)(b) provides: A Rider shall not:
(ii) strike a horse with a whip in a manner or to an extent which is excessive.
(ii) strike a horse with a whip in a manner or to an extent which is excessive.
The “Guidelines With Respect to Acceptable Use of the Whip” provide:
Without affecting the generality of Rule 638(3)(b) a rider may be penalised if their whip use is outside of the following guidelines:-
Without affecting the generality of Rule 638(3)(b) a rider may be penalised if their whip use is outside of the following guidelines:-
Inside the final 600 metres of any Race, official trial or jump-out a horse may be struck with the drawn whip up to five times after which the rider must cease their use of the whip for a minimum of five strides before striking the horse again with the drawn whip, with this restriction to apply prior to the final 100 metres. The whip may then be used at the rider’s discretion until the winning post is reached.
Prior to the final 600 metres of a race, official trial or jump-out the use of the drawn whip is acceptable if used in moderation and not continually.
Submissions for Decision:
Mr Goodwin showed the side-on view of the race from the top of the straight and identified Mr Elliot on “Staccato” racing in or near the lead, two horse widths off the rail. He said the Stewards had no problems with Mr Elliot’s use of the whip from the 600m to the top of the straight. He said, however from the 350m to the 100m Mr Elliot struck his horse eight times without the required five stride respite.
Mr Elliot said he did not disagree with Mr Goodwin’s interpretation of the film. Mr Elliot said whenever “Staccato” gets to the front or goes head to head with another horse he “just floats there” and won’t go past the other horse. He said he was trying his best to get his horse to go past the other horse.
To a question from the Committee Mr Elliot said he had ridden the horse many times in the past.
Mr Bradley said Mr Elliot was aware of the guidelines around the use of the whip and he could not defend the actions of Mr Elliot. He said Mr Elliot had the opportunity to return his hands to the reins several times but hadn’t done so.
Submissions for Penalty:
Mr Balcombe said this was Mr Elliot’s fourth breach of the Rule since 1 August 2017 – the previous breaches being at New Plymouth on 26 October where he was fined $300, at Counties on 27 October where he was fined $500 and at Te Rapa on 23 December where he was suspended for 6 national riding days (29 January 2017 to 3 January 2018 inclusive). He said today’s breach, being only 8 strikes, was at the low end of the scale but asked the Committee to note it was Mr Elliot’s fourth in a short period of time. He said the Stewards believed a period of suspension was an appropriate penalty but did not specify how many days that should be.
Mr Elliot had no comments to make.
Mr Bradley said Mr Elliot was a young and enthusiastic rider who, when the opportunity arose, was focussed on winning rather than remembering to ride within the whip guidelines. He said going forward he was prepared to try and help Mr Elliot whenever they were riding at the same meeting and that he would be contacting the National Riding Mentor – Mr Harris – to talk to him about Mr Elliot receiving help to ensure he did not continue to breach the whip guidelines.
To a question from the Committee Mr Elliot said he had not spoken to Mr Harris since he was last at Apprentice School, which was several weeks ago, and had not received any one on one assistance from him regarding his use of the whip.
Reasons for Penalty:
The Committee has reviewed the film of the race from the top of the straight to the 100m mark and taken into account the submissions made. The Committee notes Mr Elliot struck his horse eight times without the required five stride respite and has therefore breached the new “Use of Whip Guidelines”. The committee believes the total number of strikes means the severity of the breach is low. However, this is Mr Elliot’s second breach of the Rule on consecutive race days, his fourth breach since 1 August 2017 and his ninth breach in calendar 2017. In determining our penalty, the Committee can only consider the four most recent breaches, but we note the previous penalties imposed on Mr Elliot are clearly not having a deterrent effect as he continues to breach the Rule. In this regard the Committee records its appreciation for the initiative shown by Mr Bradley who has offered guidance to Mr Elliot when he is riding at meetings with Mr Elliot in the future and for his decision to contact the National Riding Mentor Mr Harris to discuss how Mr Elliot’s use of the whip can be “improved”.
The Committee is aware that since 1 August 2017 four jockeys have breached the excessive use of the whip Rule on four occasions and whilst we do not propose to address individually in this decision those previous cases we have taken them into account, where relevant, in deciding the penalty to be imposed.
The JCA’s Penalty Guidelines do not state a starting point for a fourth breach of this Rule. The Committee has therefore decided that the starting point for today’s breach will be eight national riding days. We do not believe there are any additional aggravating factors to justify an increase in the penalty nor do we believe there are any mitigating factors that allow us to reduce it. The Committee has decided, on this occasion, that a period of suspension is an appropriate penalty and Mr Elliot is suspended for eight national riding days. That suspension will commence immediately at the conclusion of the suspension imposed on Mr Elliot at Te Rapa on 23 December 2017.
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: 259cfd383ea0363611f7730e36db6c3c
informantnumber:
horsename:
hearing_racingtype:
startdate: no date provided
newcharge: Excessive Use of the Whip
plea: admitted
penaltyrequired: 1
decisiondate: 28/12/2017
hearing_title: Taranaki RI 27 December 2017 - R 6 - Chair, Mr P Williams
charge:
facts:
Following the running of race 6, the “Farmlands 1600”, Information A9216 was filed by Stipendiary Steward Mr D Balcombe under Rule 638(3)(b)(ii). The information stated “that R Elliot used his whip excessively prior to the 100m on “Staccato”.
Mr Elliot signed the Information admitting the breach and at the beginning of the hearing confirmed that was correct and also that he understood the Rule under which he was charged. He also confirmed he was aware of the new Guidelines regarding acceptable use of the whip effective from 1 August 2017. Mr Elliot was assisted during the hearing by senior rider Mr Bradley.
Rule 638(3)(b) provides: A Rider shall not:
(ii) strike a horse with a whip in a manner or to an extent which is excessive.
(ii) strike a horse with a whip in a manner or to an extent which is excessive.
The “Guidelines With Respect to Acceptable Use of the Whip” provide:
Without affecting the generality of Rule 638(3)(b) a rider may be penalised if their whip use is outside of the following guidelines:-
Without affecting the generality of Rule 638(3)(b) a rider may be penalised if their whip use is outside of the following guidelines:-
Inside the final 600 metres of any Race, official trial or jump-out a horse may be struck with the drawn whip up to five times after which the rider must cease their use of the whip for a minimum of five strides before striking the horse again with the drawn whip, with this restriction to apply prior to the final 100 metres. The whip may then be used at the rider’s discretion until the winning post is reached.
Prior to the final 600 metres of a race, official trial or jump-out the use of the drawn whip is acceptable if used in moderation and not continually.
appealdecision:
isappeal:
submissionsfordecision:
Mr Goodwin showed the side-on view of the race from the top of the straight and identified Mr Elliot on “Staccato” racing in or near the lead, two horse widths off the rail. He said the Stewards had no problems with Mr Elliot’s use of the whip from the 600m to the top of the straight. He said, however from the 350m to the 100m Mr Elliot struck his horse eight times without the required five stride respite.
Mr Elliot said he did not disagree with Mr Goodwin’s interpretation of the film. Mr Elliot said whenever “Staccato” gets to the front or goes head to head with another horse he “just floats there” and won’t go past the other horse. He said he was trying his best to get his horse to go past the other horse.
To a question from the Committee Mr Elliot said he had ridden the horse many times in the past.
Mr Bradley said Mr Elliot was aware of the guidelines around the use of the whip and he could not defend the actions of Mr Elliot. He said Mr Elliot had the opportunity to return his hands to the reins several times but hadn’t done so.
reasonsfordecision:
Decision:
As Mr Elliot admitted the breach the charge was found proved.
sumissionsforpenalty:
Mr Balcombe said this was Mr Elliot’s fourth breach of the Rule since 1 August 2017 – the previous breaches being at New Plymouth on 26 October where he was fined $300, at Counties on 27 October where he was fined $500 and at Te Rapa on 23 December where he was suspended for 6 national riding days (29 January 2017 to 3 January 2018 inclusive). He said today’s breach, being only 8 strikes, was at the low end of the scale but asked the Committee to note it was Mr Elliot’s fourth in a short period of time. He said the Stewards believed a period of suspension was an appropriate penalty but did not specify how many days that should be.
Mr Elliot had no comments to make.
Mr Bradley said Mr Elliot was a young and enthusiastic rider who, when the opportunity arose, was focussed on winning rather than remembering to ride within the whip guidelines. He said going forward he was prepared to try and help Mr Elliot whenever they were riding at the same meeting and that he would be contacting the National Riding Mentor – Mr Harris – to talk to him about Mr Elliot receiving help to ensure he did not continue to breach the whip guidelines.
To a question from the Committee Mr Elliot said he had not spoken to Mr Harris since he was last at Apprentice School, which was several weeks ago, and had not received any one on one assistance from him regarding his use of the whip.
reasonsforpenalty:
The Committee has reviewed the film of the race from the top of the straight to the 100m mark and taken into account the submissions made. The Committee notes Mr Elliot struck his horse eight times without the required five stride respite and has therefore breached the new “Use of Whip Guidelines”. The committee believes the total number of strikes means the severity of the breach is low. However, this is Mr Elliot’s second breach of the Rule on consecutive race days, his fourth breach since 1 August 2017 and his ninth breach in calendar 2017. In determining our penalty, the Committee can only consider the four most recent breaches, but we note the previous penalties imposed on Mr Elliot are clearly not having a deterrent effect as he continues to breach the Rule. In this regard the Committee records its appreciation for the initiative shown by Mr Bradley who has offered guidance to Mr Elliot when he is riding at meetings with Mr Elliot in the future and for his decision to contact the National Riding Mentor Mr Harris to discuss how Mr Elliot’s use of the whip can be “improved”.
The Committee is aware that since 1 August 2017 four jockeys have breached the excessive use of the whip Rule on four occasions and whilst we do not propose to address individually in this decision those previous cases we have taken them into account, where relevant, in deciding the penalty to be imposed.
The JCA’s Penalty Guidelines do not state a starting point for a fourth breach of this Rule. The Committee has therefore decided that the starting point for today’s breach will be eight national riding days. We do not believe there are any additional aggravating factors to justify an increase in the penalty nor do we believe there are any mitigating factors that allow us to reduce it. The Committee has decided, on this occasion, that a period of suspension is an appropriate penalty and Mr Elliot is suspended for eight national riding days. That suspension will commence immediately at the conclusion of the suspension imposed on Mr Elliot at Te Rapa on 23 December 2017.
penalty:
Mr Elliot is suspended from the close of racing on 3 January 2018 to the close of racing on 13 January 2018.
hearing_type: Hearing
Rules: 638(3)(b)(ii)
Informant: Mr D Balcombe - Stipendiary Steward
JockeysandTrainer: Mr R Elliot - Apprentice Jockey
Otherperson: Mr N Goodwin - Stipendiary Steward, Mr D Bradley - Licensed Jockey assisting Mr Elliot
PersonPresent:
Respondent:
StipendSteward:
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