JOCKEYS GIVEN NOTICE OF A FURTHER UPCOMING AMENDMENT TO THE CONTROVERSIAL WHIP RULE

By Graham Potter | Wednesday, July 29, 2015

Jockeys throughout Australia have been given a four month’s notice with regard to an important rule amendment which will be implemented from December 1, 2015.

The rule relates to the use of the whip and in respect of Australian Rule of Racing AR.137A, the Board of Racing Australia has decided:

1. To remove the distinction between forehand and backhand whip strikes so that there is a limit of five forehand or backhand whip strikes prior to the 100 metres.

2. To introduce stronger penalties for whip offences including greater emphasis on suspensions for serious breaches and for breaches in Group and Listed races.

3. The Chairmen of Stewards Committee to develop a uniform Penalty Template in the form of the current Careless Riding Penalty Template which ensures consistency across jurisdictions.

4. Amendments to AR.137A to come into force on 1 December, 2015 to enable an education initiative to be undertaken to advise jockeys of their strict liability under the new whip rule with training programs for apprentices to be a focus.

These changes are described by Racing Australia Board (ARB) Chairman John Messara as being ‘an extension of the reforms of 2009’.

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‘The reforms of 2009 ... ‘

In 2009 Bob Bentley, the then chairman of the ARB ... against a backdrop of controversy ... announced sweeping changes to the rules governing use of the whip.

These changes included (amongst others):

1 The type of whip used. (From 1st August 2009 there would be mandatory use of padded whips in races and official trials). At the time Bentley stated, “We have considered all the arguments for and against padded whips. The best scientific advice available to us says that padded whips do not inflict pain or injury, and that is the outcome we want.”

2 New regulations that tightly limit the circumstances in which a whip may be used. Bentley clarified that point. “Using an action that raises the arm above shoulder height will now be prohibited as will the use of the whip where there are no prospects of improving the horse’s placing.’

3 New regulations that tightly limit the way in which a whip may be used. Bentley again: “The whip is not to be used more than five times before the 200 metre mark, and after that point not in consecutive strides.” (Five times in a forehand manner. Backhand use was unlimited. The new rule also restricted the number of hits in the last 200 metres to three consecutive hits, and only on alternate strides after that).

This aspect of the rule was amended to seven uses of the whip over the last 100m before the ARB ultimately, following industrial action by industry participants, relented and further amended the rule to allow jockeys the freedom of unlimited use of the whip (within other guideline constraints) over the last 100 metres of a race.

During this turbulent time, Bentley provided the ARB’s reasoning behind their overall course of action.

“These changes send a clear message that Australian Racing is fully attuned to contemporary community expectations,” Bentley said.

“The need for change is clear and there was no point fiddling around at the edges. There is no point procrastinating where there is industry and public expectations that practices of the past are no longer condoned. Once we opened up the subject we were determined to do it properly.”

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Now, six years later, another amendment to that rule has been made.

John Messara, the sitting chair of the ARB, explains:

“The changes to the whip rules in 2009 introduced limits on the number and manner of whip strikes which in conjunction with a padded whip has ensured the welfare of the horse.

"However, too great a reliance on the backhand application of the whip has developed in response to the limits imposed on the forehand application.”

“After careful consideration, we have decided that backhand strikes should be treated in the same way as forehand strikes so as to leave no room for misinterpretation of the rules against excessive use.”

(To clarify that, since 2009 jockeys have been allowed to use the whip five times in a forehand manner with no restriction on backhand use. From December 1, jockeys will only be able to use the whip in either manner a total of five times before the 100m).

Messara added, "Importantly, harsher penalties for breaches of the rule will be imposed in a consistent and uniform manner across Australia”

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That template for punishment will draw an interested line in the argument.

It can be vigorously argued that current penalties, particularly in rich races, have not proved to be a satisfactory deterrent with jockeys arguably happy to take it on the chin when the reward outweighs the punishment.

Harsher penalties mooted in the past have been suspensions instead of fines and loss of rider’s percentage earnings if he or she is found to have transgressed the whip rule to a serious degree.

Disqualifying horses whose riders are guilty of an excessive whip transgression, which might have given them an unfair advantage over rivals who had stayed within the rules, would be a really contentious outcome.

With ‘might’ being the optimum word in that sentence, beaten riders have so far steered away from the protest option as it would appear to be very difficult for any aggrieved party to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that a clear advantage had in fact been gained because of a breach of the whip rule.

Unless of course, a simple premise applies ... you break the rule, you lose the race.

And right there, rightly or wrongly, you will have the biggest deterrent of all ... and the most despised.

Whichever way you chose to look at it, the bottom line is this latest set of amendments to the whip rule will bring a new dimension to race riding when it comes into force on December 1.