Whangarei RC 20 August 2022 – R6 – Ashvin Goindasamy

Evidence:

Following the running of Race 6, the Respondent, Class A Rider Mr A Goindasamy admitted a charge of careless riding which was filed pursuant to Rule 638(1)(d).  The Information alleged that as the Rider of THE BOGEYMAN, he permitted his mount to shift inwards when not sufficiently clear of POVERTY BAY, which was checked and forced inwards crowding SILVERINA near the 900m

The Respondent acknowledged he understood the Rule and confirmed his admission of the breach.

Rule 638(1) (d) provides: A Rider shall not ride a horse in a manner which the Judicial Committee considers to be careless.

Using the available race films Stipendiary Steward, Mr A Dooley demonstrated the incident and identified the horses and riders concerned.

Mr Dooley said that approaching the 900 metre mark the Respondent was racing in a 4 wide position, looks to his inside and permits his mount to shift towards the rail when never the required distance clear. As a result of the shift POVERTY BAY was placed in restricted room and had to check off heels which caused further pressure to the runner on its inside SILVERINA who made contact with the running rail.

In response, the Respondent stated that he was rolling forward approach the corner and thought that he was clear. He said he didn’t realise the horses to his inner had kicked up inside him.

Decision:

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

Submission for Penalty:

Mr Oatham produced the Respondent’s (A Goindasamy) riding record which indicated 1  previous breach under the careless riding Rule in the last 12 months on the 1^st of June 2022, for a period of 5 days.

The Respondent, A Goindasamy has had 587 mounts in the past 12 months.

Mr Oatham said Stewards assessed the level of carelessness to be just below the mid range.

The Respondent advised that he wished to take any proposed suspension immediately, and had nothing further to add.

Reasons for Penalty:

After considering all submissions the Adjudicative Committee determined the Respondent’s, Mr Goindasamy carelessness to be in the mid range and adopted a 7-day (suspension) as the starting point. This conforms with the NZTR Penalty Guidelines (as of 1 March 2022).

The available films clearly established that the Respondent allowed his mount to shift inwards when not sufficiently clear, and caused pressure to several runners to his inside, one of which made contact with the running rail for a prolonged period. It was identified that one of the effected horses was over-racing at the time of the incident and this may have been a contributing factor to the interference it suffered.

In assessing an appropriate penalty the Adjudicative Committee had regard for the mitigating factors associated with the breach, these being, the admission of the breach, Mr Goindasamy’s record which is considered as very good (given his number of rides) and the fact that one of the trailing runners was over racing at the time of the incident which may have contributed to its tightening.

There were no aggravating factors.

After consideration of the above factors a 5-day suspension was imposed..

Conclusion – Penalty:

The Respondent’s License to ride in races is suspended for a period of 5 days commencing after racing on 20/8/22 and concluding after racing on 28/8/22

The meeting at Waverly on the 21/8/22 was not considered as it was a jumping riders meeting.