Jockeys banned after riding wrong course
30 April 2002
Seven jump jockeys, including Tony McCoy, have received a 10-day ban after losing their sense of direction
Tony McCoy, along with six other jockeys, started the new jump season witha 10-day suspension at Plumpton yesterday (29 April).
They had all taken the wrong course in the first race which was “won” by 7-1 shot Potentate, ridden by Gerry Supple. Gerry was given an extra four-day ban for leading the field on the incorrect route round the Sussex track.
The race was declared void after the stewards ruled that the riders had steered their mounts on the wrong side of a running rail.
The banned group included Barry Fenton, Paul Flynn, Tom Scudamore, Jason Maguire and leading amateur David Crosse.
Tony McCoy, who had set a record of 289 winners on the final day of the 2001-2002 season at Sandown on Saturday, took a video of the race to study at home. It is believed that he and his colleagues are considering an appeal.
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It is ironic that Tony, who had been loathe to take a holiday during his arduous record-breaking winter, has now been handed a 10-day opportunity to get away from it all.
The Jockey Club has now decided that the race should not have been declared void after all. The disciplinary committee has quashed the jockeys’ banand Potentate has been reinstated as the winner.
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