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British Racing Unites to Highlight Industry Conduct

Several stakeholder bodies of British horseracing have assumed a united front in regard to the conduct of those who work in the sport, while committing to take wide-ranging action to offer support and education to the industry.

In an excerpt from a joint statement issued Tuesday by The British Horseracing Authority (BHA), National Trainers Federation (NTF), Professional Jockeys Association (PJA), National Association of Racing Staff (NARS), Racehorse Owners Association (ROA), Thoroughbred Breeders' Association (TBA) and Racecourse Association (RCA):

“It is essential that horseracing remains a progressive, modern industry when it comes to the conduct of our people. We must prioritize the wellbeing and development of our workforce, stand against discrimination of any kind in British racing, and invest in making racing a safe, fulfilling place to work…We must encourage a culture of openness and seek to support anyone who faces problems or has found themselves in difficulty. We must promote a culture of respect in how those involved in racing interact with one another and promote more diversity and inclusion at all levels of the industry.”

All groups will take part in a working party which will report to the industry People Board and will assist in promoting the positive elements of conduct within the industry, education, deterring poor behaviour and discrimination while empowering people to call out conduct which falls short. The group will be chaired by the BHA and include representatives from the BHA, NTF, NARS, PJA, RCA, ROA and TBA.

The working party and resultant action lead the effort to introduce a new industry Code of Conduct, which will introduced in Spring 2022. The Code of Conduct has been developed by the signatories, who are also signatories of British racing's Diversity and Inclusion industry commitment. Among the working party's chief objectives is to ensure that the new Code of Conduct is properly communicated in addition to the introduction of the sport's new Safeguarding policy and regulations, which are also close to being finalized.

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Rupert Arnold to Step Down as NTF Chief

National Trainers Federation Chief Executive Rupert Arnold will step down from his role at the end of the year, the NTF announced on Tuesday.

Appointed to the role in August of 2000, Arnold has overseen a significant expansion in the range of racing industry issues covered by the NTF and its services to members.

Rupert Arnold said, “I have had so many amazing opportunities in my time at the NTF and for that I will be forever grateful to trainers. Although it brings many challenges, nothing can surpass the range of experiences in this role.

“I would like to thank all the NTF Presidents who have helped me so much by imparting their knowledge and understanding of racing. But most importantly, I want to thank the NTF executive team. We work so closely together and each one of them is incredibly dedicated to helping the membership; the service they provide is second to none. This is epitomised by their response to the Covid pandemic. They deserve the highest praise because they left nothing in the locker in how they supported trainers through the crisis.

“As for the future, I will be doing some consultancy for the NTF and would like to think that my experience could be useful elsewhere in the sport.”

Emma Lavelle, President of the NTF, said, “The NTF is enormously grateful for the work that Rupert has done on behalf of all trainers over the last 21 years. He has helped us meet a range of challenges both at home and within the wider racing industry and has worked tirelessly in the process. We are very pleased to continue to have access to his experience and advice in his consultancy role and wish Rupert well in all future endeavours.”

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British Racing Bodies Commit to Improving Diversity and Inclusion

Organisations across British racing have united to improve diversity and inclusion across the sport under a unified “Industry Commitment”. The Industry Commitment, which is part of British racing's COVID-19 Recovery Plan for British racing', aims to formalise the sport's approach to diversity and inclusion and builds on the extensive existing activity already taking place, including community engagement, education activity and charitable work. This is highlighted through the Racing Together platform which has already showcased over 80 initiatives.

Organisations that have signed on to the Industry Commitment are: the British Horseracing Authority (BHA), Racecourse Association (RCA), Racehorse Owners Association (ROA), Thoroughbred Breeders Association (TBA), National Trainers Federation (NTF), Professional Jockeys Association (PJA), National Association of Racing Staff (NARS) and Great British Racing (GBR). There are five areas that underpin the Industry Commitment and each organisations will former their individual Diversity and Inclusion Action Plans:

Leadership and Accountability–industry leaders ensuring and taking accountability for the creation of a more diverse and inclusive sport
Good Governance–ensuring a better understanding of the racing landscape to influence policy, practice and procedures
Education and Awareness Raising–giving everyone across racing access to learning about diversity and inclusion and why they're important to the sport
Celebrating Racing's Diversity–showcasing the diversity that exists across the racing industry in order to create an inclusive sport where difference is embraced, and everyone is valued
Engaging New Audiences–promoting racing as a sport for all and encouraging diverse communities to take part

Annamarie Phelps, Chair of British Horseracing Authority, said: “This is an important step forward for the sport. We have so much to celebrate in British racing, including men and women being able to compete on a level playing field. Equally, it is the responsibility of all of us in the sport to ensure we can showcase British racing as a modern sport which is truly diverse, inclusive and open to all. Being proactive about improving diversity is essential to the long-term viability of the sport, but first and foremost it is absolutely the right thing to do.”

For more information on the Industry Commitment, please visit www.media.britishhorseracing.com.

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UK Equine Anti-Doping Rules Altered

A number of changes have been made to the equine anti-doping rules in the UK, the British Horseracing Authority announced on Wednesday. These changes have been made following a comprehensive review of the sport’s anti-doping rules announced in 2018. Individual trainers and the National Trainers Federation were consulted, with additional input from both the UK and World Anti-Doping Agencies and sports bodies such as the FEI. Northridge LLP, a specialist sports law practice, also provided independent legal advice on the rule changes. In summary, the changes, which will go into effect on Sept. 1, are as follows:

If a horse tests positive for a prohibited substance, in order to avoid a penalty the responsible person must establish the precise source of the positive finding and that they had taken all reasonable precautions
Cautions are available for lower level breaches
Suspended sanctions are available for breaches

More information and the reasoning behind the changes is available here. The new rules and penalties can also be viewed by clicking forthcoming on the www.rules.britishhorseracing.com website.

Tim Naylor, Director of Integrity and Regulation at the BHA, said, “The culmination of this project has followed consultation with the appropriate parties as well as legal advice in relation to the rule changes, and it is our hope that we now have a set of equine anti-doping rules which are clear both for those who enforce them and those who are bound by them.

“We have to ensure that our rules in relation to anti-doping are sufficiently robust, but also that as much as is possible in such a technical area everyone bound by the rules understands what is required of them. Whilst in places the requirements upon the responsible person have been strengthened, there have also been changes to allow more appropriate penalties for lower and mid-level breaches of the rules.

“We have communicated these changes now ahead of their implementation date next month to allow sufficient time for participants to ask any questions they may have prior to the rules taking effect.”

In response to these new changes, the National Trainers Federation released the following statement, which read in part: “Trainers have strict liability for the presence of prohibited substances in a horse’s system. In the light of Disciplinary Panel decisions since the cases that led to the BHA’s review, the NTF believes the existing equine anti-doping rules provide sufficient encouragement for compliance. In that context, the outcome of the BHA’s review into penalties in these cases is a mixed bag for trainers.

“The NTF is pleased that the BHA took on board the need to remove penalties where malicious administration could be proved. However, strict liability reverses the principle of “innocent until proved guilty” by putting the onus on the defendant to prove innocence – in this case by having to prove the precise source of the prohibited substance….

“To mitigate the burden of strict liability, the BHA and NTF have agreed restructured penalties. It is right that the Disciplinary Panel should have the option of cautioning a trainer instead of imposing a financial penalty (as required by the current rules), for the least culpable breaches.

“We disagree with the BHA about the minimum sanction of a suspended disqualification in addition to a financial penalty for the lowest level breach for substances prohibited at all times. If the Panel is satisfied the trainer had no knowledge of the substance’s administration and had taken reasonable precautions, a suspended disqualification is an unwarranted stain on the trainer’s reputation.”

To read the full NTF statement, click here.

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