The British Horseracing Authority (BHA) called a meeting on Tuesday (10 December) to discuss the next steps after the £10m race-fixing trial collapsed last Friday.
The BHA had already confirmed that they would re-analyse evidence from the criminal trial to assess whether there were breaches of the Rules of Racing which would require disciplinary action regardless of the lawsuit outcome.
The BHA and the police came under constant criticism during the case, which foundered due to lack of evidence. Many experts had suggested that Tuesday’s BHA board meeting would yield high-profile resignations.
However, chief executive Nic Coward issued a statement reiterating the BHA’s commitment to preserve racing’s integrity and outlining their plan to review the race-fixing trial according to their ongoing strategy.
“British horse racing has led the way in tackling issues associated with the modern betting environment,” he said. “We will continue to do so.”
Coward also confirmed that the BHA did not fund the trial.
Non-executive director Ben Gunn stressed that “Kieren Fallon was not the focus of this information [which caused the Jockey Club to suspect criminal activity]”.
