ORC 2009

The appellant appealed a Standardbred Official Ruling that fined him $1,000 and placed him on a one-year probation for violating the Rules of Standardbred Racing.

The Ontario Racing Commission panel denied the appeal, upholding the fine and probation.

Additionally, the panel imposed a further $1,000 penalty on the appellant for bringing a frivolous appeal, noting that he had agreed to the facts and offered no clear, compelling, or cogent explanation for his actions.

Hanover Raceway appealed a decision by the Deputy Director approving Grand River Raceway's application to race on Wednesdays during the summer of 2010.

Hanover argued this would negatively impact driver availability.

The Ontario Racing Commission denied the appeal, finding the Deputy Director operated within the applicable policy directive and noting that Hanover could mitigate impacts by moving its own race days or benefiting from a trickle-down effect of driver availability.

The Ontario Harness Horse Association (OHHA) requested a hearing regarding the actions of Woodbine Entertainment Group (WEG) and the Central Ontario Standardbred Association (COSA).

WEG brought a motion arguing that the Ontario Racing Commission lacked jurisdiction to hear the matter.

The Panel granted WEG's motion, finding that the Commission had no jurisdiction, and dismissed OHHA's application.

Windsor Raceway appealed a decision of the Deputy Director of the Ontario Racing Commission denying its revised 2010 live race date application.

The application proposed 86 race days with 25 race programs carded as doubleheaders, effectively reducing the number of race days.

The Commission had previously issued a moratorium on race date reductions for 2010.

The Panel found the Deputy Director's ruling reasonable, as the proposed change was substantial and violated the intent of the moratorium.

The appeal was denied.

Sudbury Downs appealed a Notice of Decision issued by the Deputy Director that declined to approve its application to shut down racing for eight weeks and reallocate race dates within a shortened season.

The Ontario Racing Commission panel heard evidence and submissions from the Administration, Sudbury Downs, and the Northern Horsemen's Association.

The panel denied the appeal, with written reasons to follow.

Sudbury Downs appealed a ruling by the Judges requiring the track to provide and maintain bedding for ship-in stalls at no cost to horsepersons, and to keep horses from the same stable together.

The Ontario Racing Commission upheld the requirement to provide bedding, finding it to be a basic animal husbandry requirement and within the Judges' authority to protect the health and welfare of horses in the public interest.

The Commission ordered the track to provide bedding until its current contract with the Northern Horsemen's Association expires, after which costs are to be resolved between the parties.

The appeal regarding stall assignments was upheld, conditional on the track's ongoing commitment to offer convenience to horsepersons.

Rideau Carleton Raceway appealed a $5,000 fine imposed by the Judges for failing to have the racing strip suitably prepared for racing, which caused the cancellation of races due to unsafe, dusty conditions.

The Ontario Racing Commission panel dismissed the appeal, finding clear evidence that the track was not race-ready and that the track superintendent failed to comply with an order to provide weekly reports.

The panel upheld the fine and ordered the track's surface committee to meet weekly with mandatory reporting.

The Ontario Harness Horse Association (OHHA) sought a hearing before the Ontario Racing Commission (ORC) regarding its status as the exclusive bargaining agent for horse people at Woodbine Entertainment Group (WEG) tracks, challenging a new agreement between WEG and the Central Ontario Standardbred Association (COSA).

WEG brought a preliminary motion arguing the ORC lacked jurisdiction to hear the matter.

The ORC granted WEG's motion, finding that the dispute was a private commercial contract issue between a track operator and trade associations, not primarily a matter of racing.

The ORC concluded it had no statutory authority or public interest mandate to intervene in complex commercial disputes or to act as a civil court.

The applicant raceway appealed a decision by the Deputy Director of the Ontario Racing Commission declining its application to vacate race dates in June and early October and apply them over the winter months.

The Commission allowed the appeal, finding that the applicant had successfully followed Policy Directive No. 3-2007.

The applicant's amended application for 130 race dates in 2010 was approved, noting the support of other regional raceways and the Ontario Harness Horse Association.

The appellant, a licensed exercise person, appealed a 49-day suspension and $150 fine for a third offence of smoking in a non-designated area at Fort Erie Racetrack.

The appellant failed to attend the de novo hearing before the Ontario Racing Commission despite being properly served and failing to submit a written request for an adjournment.

The Commission proceeded in his absence, dismissed the appeal, increased the suspension to 60 days due to his wanton disregard for safety rules, and imposed an additional $1,500 fine for a frivolous appeal.

The appellant, a standardbred licensee, appealed a Judges' Ruling that suspended him for ten days and fined him $500 for using offensive language and engaging in improper conduct towards racing officials.

During a meeting, the appellant became angry, tore up a Notice of Hearing, threw the pieces at a judge, and physically shoved another judge.

The Ontario Racing Commission denied the appeal, finding the appellant's admissions and the officials' testimony clearly established the violations of the rules of racing.

The appellants appealed a decision of the Standardbred Industry Appeal Board that overturned a ruling by the Mohawk Raceway Judges.

The Judges had placed the horse Won The West fourth for going inside two consecutive pylons during the stretch drive.

The Ontario Racing Commission allowed the appeal, finding that the horse did go inside two consecutive pylons without interference, which under industry protocol constitutes an unfair advantage.

The original order of finish posted by the Judges was restored.

The standardbred licensees appealed rulings suspending them for 15 days and fining them $1,000 each for violating racing rules related to the injection of a horse on race day and failing to properly name the trainer.

The licensees failed to attend the appeal hearing despite receiving notice and warnings about costs.

The Ontario Racing Commission proceeded in their absence, accepted the unchallenged evidence that the horse was injected to affect performance, and upheld the original penalties.

The Commission also ordered the licensees to pay $1,500 in costs for bringing a frivolous appeal.

The appellants appealed a decision of the Ontario Racing Commission Judges fining them $17,343.50 each for violating Standardbred Rule 15.09(a) by racing a claimed horse outside of Ontario within 60 days of the claim.

The appellants argued the rule was ambiguous and the officials lacked authority to impose the fine.

The Commission denied the appeal, finding the officials had delegated authority and the penalty policy was clear and appropriate to prevent profiting from rule violations.

However, the Commission reduced the fines to $8,671.75 each due to mitigating factors, including the appellants' good records and the horse's immediate return to Ontario.

Sean Sullivan, a licensed standardbred trainer, appealed two rulings regarding positive TCO2 tests for his horses Rosester and K Dog.

For the first positive test, Sullivan argued the results were invalid because the blood sample was not tested within the 48-hour timeframe prescribed by the rules.

The Panel dismissed this argument, finding the delay did not prejudice Sullivan and the scientific evidence confirmed the accuracy of the results up to 96 hours.

For the second positive test, Sullivan sought a reduced penalty.

The Panel upheld the original penalties, noting the second offence occurred while Sullivan was on probation for the first, and imposed a total fine of $6,500 and a 330-day suspension.

The licensee appealed a Notice of Proposed Order to revoke his tradesperson licence for failing to disclose his criminal record and driving history on his licence applications.

The Ontario Racing Commission found that the licensee violated Rule 15.23 of the Rules of Thoroughbred Racing by making false or misleading statements.

However, the Commission determined that revocation was too harsh a penalty given the licensee's established business and lack of threat to the sport's integrity.

The appeal against revocation was granted, but the licensee was fined $7,500.

The appellant, a licensed driver/trainer/owner, requested a hearing after a horse he trained tested positive for Darbepoetin-Alpha (Aranesp) during out-of-competition testing.

The Executive Director of the Ontario Racing Commission had proposed a 12-year suspension and a $40,000 fine.

At the hearing, the parties presented a joint resolution agreement.

The Commission accepted the agreement, imposing a 12-year suspension and a reduced fine of $25,000, noting the appellant's lower level of industry involvement compared to previous cases.

The appellant jockey appealed a one-year suspension imposed by the Stewards for an unsatisfactory ride, alleging he failed to persevere with his mount or demonstrate an effort to win.

The jockey had ridden the horse without using the whip, keeping it on the bit, which contrasted with conventional riding methods.

The Commission found that the jockey was following the trainer's specific instructions not to whip the horse, as previous aggressive whipping had caused the horse to stop running.

The Commission concluded that the jockey's ride was a genuine effort to achieve the best possible result and quashed the suspension.

The appellant jockey appealed a three-day suspension and horse disqualification issued by the Stewards for causing interference during a thoroughbred race.

The Ontario Racing Commission panel heard testimony from the Stewards and other jockeys, and concluded that the appellant was not clear when he moved his horse, thereby causing the interference.

The appeal was denied and the suspension upheld.

The Standardbred licensee appealed an Order of Immediate Suspension and Notice of Proposed Order suspending his license for 10 years and fining him $40,000 after one of his horses tested positive for Darbepoetin-alpha (DPO).

The appellant challenged the scientific and forensic validity of the testing methodology used by the Pennsylvania Equine Toxicology & Research Laboratory (PETRL).

The Ontario Racing Commission panel found the PETRL methodology to be scientifically and forensically valid, confirmed the 10-year suspension, and increased the fine to $60,000 due to the horse's high racing status and earnings.