The owners of a horse that was disqualified after initially winning the Canadian Derby more than three years ago have lost a bid to reclaim the title.
Rollingson Racing Stables had argued before the Alberta Court of Appeal that Chief Know It All should be reinstated as the winner of the 2017 Thoroughbred horse race — the largest in Western Canada.
The $150,000 race was held in Edmonton on Aug. 19, 2017, and about a year later Horse Racing Alberta’s appeal tribunal disqualified Chief Know It All for interfering with another horse, Double Bear.
There was a dead heat for second between Double Bear and Trooper John, and the stewards investigated a foul claim on behalf of Double Bear.
The claim of foul focused on whether Chief Know It All came over and impeded rail-running Double Bear (Kentucky Bear) at the head of the stretch or if Double
Bear caused his own stutter-step problem by running up on the left hind of Chief Know It All.
The stewards ruled no foul occurred, leaving up Chief Know It All as the winner.
The connections of Double Bear appealed to Horse Racing Alberta’s Appeal Tribunal comprised of up to three members who hear appeals on rulings made by horse racing officials, with the ability to render reversals independent of Horse Racing Alberta.
Ten months later, the Appeal Tribunal reversed the outcome disqualifying Chief Know It All for interference and moving up Double Bear and Trooper John as the dead-heat winners.
Rollingson Racing took the matter to court, seeking another reversal, this time back to the original stewards’ decision, but had no luck in two lower court attempts before the case went before the Alberta Court of Appeal, which similarly upheld the tribunal’s power to overrule stewards.
According to Canadian Press, “Rollingson Racing argued that the Appeal Tribunal did not have enough members to make the decision to disqualify, because one of them had been let go partway through the proceedings. The Appeal Court has dismissed the argument [ruling that] a section of Alberta’s horse racing act could be interpreted to allow a former member to return so as to conclude a complaint that was already before the tribunal.”
Rollingson Racing argued that the appeal tribunal did not have enough members to make the decision to disqualify, because one of them had been let go partway through the proceedings.
The Appeal Court has dismissed the argument.
The court says a section of Alberta’s horse racing act could be interpreted to allow a former member to return so as to conclude a complaint that was already before the tribunal.
Video from Global News of the race here.
Related reading here.
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