Gordon Elliott has had his training licence suspended for a 12 months by the Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board (IHRB) following a hearing on Friday afternoon, with six months of the ban suspended. He has also been fined €15,000.
The ban relates to a photo which appeared on social media that appeared to show Elliott sitting on top of a dead horse at his Cullentra House Stables in county Meath.
The trainer would later admit the photo was real, apologising for the offence it may have caused.
He would attend a hearing at Naas racecourse at 9.30am today, with the IHRB announcing their verdict this evening.
They ruled that while no 'animal cruelty' had taken place in this case, it was nonetheless an 'animal welfare' issue.
They also admitted that they felt there was a 'sinister aspect' to the case, with this photo becoming public likely part of a 'concerted attack' on Elliott, with the image having originally been taken in 2019.
The ban will commence from Tuesday, March 9th.
Referral Hearing of Mr. Gordon Elliott (Trainer) on Friday 5th March 2021 pic.twitter.com/NftfngdOUl
— IHRB (@ihrb_ie) March 5, 2021
The British Horseracing Authority had previously ruled that they would not accept entries from Elliott until the investigation around this matter had been completed.
A number of high profile horses, such as Envoi Allen and Quixilios, have also been removed from his yard.
This now means that no horses under the trainer's name will run at the upcoming Cheltenham Festival.
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