Horse racing trainer Ronan McNally was banned from Irish horse racing for 12 years after being found guilty of multiple integrity breaches
This is thought to be the longest ban in the history of the sport.
McNally has been fined ยฃ44,000 (โฌ50,000) and told to pay back around ยฃ11,800 (โฌ13,400) in winnings. He has also been banned from Irish racing.ย When the verdict was made official in December 2022, it was found that the County Armagh trainer was “at least partly in breach” of 10 of the 11 alleged rule violations.
Horse racing trainer Ronan McNally hit with 12 year ban after string of integrity breaches
“The committee regards the findings against Mr McNally as very serious,” read the verdict from the IHRB. “His offences strike at the integrity of the sport and the objective of having a level playing field for all who send horses out to race.
๐ฃ "It brings the entire integrity of the industry into disrepute."@jane_mangan & @irishkor provide their analysis on the news that Ronan McNally has been banned from Irish racing for 12 years & has been charged โฌ50,000
Read more later today on https://t.co/4uSo7YneoB pic.twitter.com/VgWo8MsGc2
— Racing TV (@RacingTV) January 31, 2023
After a four-day hearing in October, it was decided that McNally’s training of his horses was “prejudicial to the integrity, proper conduct and good reputation of horseracing”ย One of his horses, Dreal Deal, had two wins from the fall of 2020 taken away because of a law about “improvement in form.” Another horse, Jam Man, had a second-place finish in Limerick taken away because of “fraudulent practise.”
Ronan McNally tried to make a cartel of abusive trainers
McNally was also found guilty of plotting with another trainer, David Dunne, to hide the fact that he owned Full Noise and All Class. Dunne was banned from Irish horse racing for two years, but the last 18 months of his sentence were put on hold for two years.
If the 12 year ban for Ronan McNally is the beginning of the sport cleaning itself up, then great.
If it is another situation where they've just slammed the "little guy" to ignore similar occurrences with bigger yards, then its very unfair and nonsensical.
— Diarmuid Nolan (@dermonolan91) January 31, 2023
Dunne’s punishment is for 36 races run by All Class, Full Noise, and Petrol Head under his name, as well as for giving “misleading information and/or false information to an official at a stewards’ inquiry” at Navan in March 2021. He was fined ยฃ4,400 (โฌ5,000) and told to pay back ยฃ23,785 in prize money that the three of them won, including three wins in 2021.
The charges go into effect on March 5, and McNally is expected to be banned for three times as long as the previous record. Stephen Mahon was suspended for four years in June 2021 because he broke animal welfare laws more than once.
Ronan McNally calling up the IHRB every time he watches a maiden hurdle. pic.twitter.com/uBVH7CN9Yp
— Rory Fitzgerald (@roryfitz15) January 31, 2023
Some people have seen McNally’s ban as a good sign that horse racing is getting better at catching people who break the rules.
What are multiple integrity breaches Ronan McNally is accused of?
Multiple integrity breaches in horse racing sports refer to instances where rules, regulations, and ethical standards that govern the sport have been violated. Examples of such breaches include:
- Doping: Administering performance-enhancing drugs to horses to improve their performance.
- Race fixing: Manipulating the outcome of a race through unethical means, such as providing incentives to jockeys or trainers to ensure a specific horse wins.
- Misrepresentation: Misrepresenting a horse’s age, breeding, or performance history in order to increase its value or performance potential.
- Fraud: Engaging in fraudulent activities, such as cheating on betting or manipulating races.
- Animal cruelty: Engaging in practices that harm the horse, such as excessive whipping or forcing horses to race when they are injured or exhausted.
These breaches can undermine the integrity of the sport and harm the welfare of the horses involved. As such, they are considered serious violations and are often punished by the governing bodies of horse racing.
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