Hawkes Bay RI 1 July 2023 – R4 – Bridget Grylls

Following the running of Race 4, the Respondent, Rider Ms B Grylls admitted a charge filed pursuant to Rule 636(1)(d).  The Information alleged that as the rider of SPEED CALL“she failed to ride her mount out fully to the finish and was beaten for fourth placing.” 

Ms Grylls acknowledged she understood the Rule and confirmed her admission of the breach.

Rule 636(1)(d) provides: A Rider shall being the Rider of a horse in a Race, must ride his horse out to the end of the Race if there is a reasonable chance of it running into a position for which there is prize money to be awarded or a dividend to be declared.

Using the available Race films, Stipendiary Steward, Mr N Goodwin demonstrated the incident and identified the horses and Riders concerned.

Mr Goodwin said the Stewards had no problem with Ms Grylls’ riding, up until approximately 80 metres from the finish. He said the films clearly showed where she stop riding over the final stages, and was beaten half a length by AOTEA LAD coming down the outside.

In response, Ms Grylls said she sat up because her horse was tiring, but it stopped more quickly than she was expecting. She was not aware of any other runners coming close to her and said the horse that beat her, had been hit with the whip 9 times.

Decision:

As the Respondent admitted the breach, the Adjudicative Committee finds the breach proved.

Submission for Penalty:

Senior Stipendiary Steward Mr Jones, said that Ms Grylls had a clear record under this Rule in the previous 12 month period.

He submitted that the Penalty Guide establishes a starting point of a 2-week suspension for the loss of fourth place.

Ms Grylls sought a deferment to any proposed suspension until after racing on Saturday July 8th.

Reasons for Penalty:

The available films clearly established that Ms Grylls stopped riding her mount out approximately 8 strides from the finish. This action cost her mount fourth place, when AOTEA LAD went past and beat her by 1/2 length. Although  it was evident on the films that SPEED CALL was tiring, Ms Grylls has an obligation under the Rules to ride out to the finish line.  The starting point for missing fourth place is a 2 week suspension. An aggravating factor was, how far out from the finish, Ms Grylls stopped riding. She is an experienced Rider and on this occasion, fell well short of expectations.

Balancing up all factors, including her clear record under this Rule and admission of the breach, a two-week suspension was considered appropriate. This equates to seven meetings.

Conclusion:

Ms Grylls’ Licence to ride in races is suspended for a period of two weeks, commencing after racing on Saturday July 8th, and concluding after racing on Saturday July 22nd, 2023.