The new urging rules begin a test program Friday Oct. 18 which includes jockeys only allowed to whip horses underhanded. There is a two-week grace period but part of the rules had included an automatic disqualification for a horse whose rider does not meet the regulations.
The HBPA Ontario issued a letter to its members today stating that it had not agreed to this penalty and it has since been rescinded.
HBPA Letter to Members:
To clarify any confusion, please be advised that the HBPA at no time agreed to “automatic disqualification” of a horse for urging violations.
Further, after meetings and consultation between HBPA, AGCO, JBA and WEG, be advised that the proposed policy to “automatically disqualify” a horse for a jockey urging violation has been rescinded. Thank you to Jim Lawson, Jonathan Zammit and Irwin Driedger for their support.
There are no changes to the original AGCO directive (see the AGCO directive below) which we distributed to our members when released. The penalty guidelines are covered in that directive. The test pilot in Ontario will commencing Friday October 18th , 2019.
For our jockeys this is a challenging change. The jockeys must limit urging to underhand use of the crop only, make no contact with the crop in a cocked position and are prohibited from hitting the horse’s belly or surrounding area.
With the scrutiny that jockeys will be facing, the HBPA is asking our members, particularly trainers, to support them and please provide jockeys reasonable instructions with regard to use of the crop while racing.
Once we have a few days of racing under the new directive, please provide us with your feedback (negative or positive) as we will be meeting with the AGCO to discuss moving forward.
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