Hanlon Suspension Ruled To Start On Dec. 1

Trainer John 'Shark' Hanlon's 10-month suspension from training will begin on Dec. 1, the Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board (IHRB) Referrals Committee ruled on Thursday.

The trainer of G1 King George VI Chase winner Hewick (Ire) (Virtual {GB}), Hanlon had appealed the IHRB decision with a potential deferral of the suspension until Apr. 1, but this request was denied. The Dec. 1 start date was the date given when his suspension was originally announced. The trainer was found to have acted in a manner that “caused significant prejudice to the integrity, proper conduct and good reputation of the sport of racing” in the removal of a dead horse from his yard earlier this year. A member of the public videoed the incident and it was widely circulated on social media, which attracted further media attention and led to the IHRB bringing charges against Hanlon, saying the conduct “attracted significant public opprobrium and adverse comment” both for the trainer personally and racing in general.

“The Committee decided that it saw nothing in the material submitted to justify deviation from the initial suggestion that the effective date of the sanctions should be December 1, 2024,” a statement released by the IHRB Committee read.

“The Committee acknowledged in the initial decision that these sanctions would be burdensome for Mr Hanlon in various ways.

“However, there was nothing in his circumstances to differentiate them from those of other trainers put in the same position by similar decisions in other cases. These cases informed the initial proposal by the Committee of a deferral to December 1, 2024.

“In summary, to defer a sanction of five or 10-months duration (depending on the ultimate approach taken by Mr Hanlon) for well over six months would tend to have the effects suggested by the IHRB and would disproportionately dilute the effect of the withdrawal sanction.

“Accordingly, the Committee confirmed that the sanctions imposed in the initial decision will take effect on December 1, 2024.”

There is a possibility that five months of the suspension will be deferred, as long as the trainer meets the conditions imposed by the IHRB referrals committee during the initial five-month span.