Suspended Ban For McGuinness

Lusk, Co.Dublin trainer Ado McGuinness has been handed a two-year disqualification from training by the Turf Club though significantly for him it has been suspended for the duration, provided the trainer does not breach any similar rules in the next two years. The sanction stems from a District Court appearance by McGuinness last year after the Department of Agriculture found unauthorised animal remedies at his training premises during an inspection in 2014. McGuinness who has enjoyed a good season with 15 winners to date, was originally fined €2,500 and was ordered to pay €1,000 towards Turf Club costs for the latest judgement. McGuinness was keen to stress that none of the substances found were performance enhancing and following the verdict he commented, “I'm just relieved it's all over. This is something which happened three years ago and I'm glad it's been brought to a close. I just want to now carry on trying to train as many winners as possible.”

The Turf Club Referrals Committee issued a statement which read, “In relation to the offence itself, the Committee felt that it was a middle range offence which would normally attract a licence suspension of two years. What occurred was damaging to the good reputation of racing as a licensed trainer had been convicted in the District Court with the resulting publicity. With regard to Mr McGuinness, the committee noted that the probable consequences of the loss of his license would be catastrophic. They also noted that the substances found were not prohibited at all times, that Mr McGuinness had a clean record, that there was a guilty plea and that he volunteered certain information. Mr McGuinness accepted the penalty and agreed that the penalty can be imposed together with any other penalty which may apply for any new offence if he breaches similar rules within the relevant period.”