Elliott’s breach of trust is so damaging

THERE’S no getting away from it. It’s nauseating. The curl of a smile on his lips. The casual way he’s holding the phone to his head. The gesture he makes to the person taking the picture, all the while sitting atop a dead horse. None of it looks good. It’s about as damaging a frame of film as you could find for a person in Gordon Elliott’s position. More than that it’s damning and damaging for the reputation of the sports of Kings writ large.

It seems to breach the bond of trust the general public have with the sport. We trust that the people in the industry will behave in such a way towards these magnificent creatures as befits the esteem in which they’re held. We trust that the thoroughbreds are treated as well as we’re always told they are – better than a lot of people. With that goes an acceptance of what can be a sometimes dangerous and somewhat cruel sport for the animals themselves. The big problem racing now has is that the image of Elliott smirking atop Morgan, a Michael O’Leary owned seven-year-old gelding, cut directly against that. In the battle for hearts and minds this won’t do the sport any favours whatsoever. Against that, we should say, that there’s no evidence whatsoever that the horses in Elliott’s charge are cared for anything other than to the highest possible standards (his success rate would suggest they’re very well treated indeed).

It’s important to note too that a still image doesn’t necessarily tell the full story. At face value it looks as though Elliott is being incredibly disrespectful of the fallen steed, and to be fair answering the phone while remaining straddled is incredibly disrespectful, but perhaps there is a legitimate reason why he’d have had to climb on top Morgan in the first place. Maybe to put a harness around him to move him back to the yard? You might think that’s giving Elliott too much of a benefit of the doubt, and maybe it is. The truth is, though, we really can’t say what happened in the moments before or after the picture was snapped. Elliott’s regret seems sincere and not just in a way that suggests regret for having gotten caught. Whatever sanction comes his way after the Irish Horse Racing Authority has competed its investigation, he’d be well-advised to take it on the chin and keep his head down, even if that means missing out on the Cheltenham Festival later this month.

Beyond that as long as this is shown to be a one-off incident, a momentary lapse of judgement, then we need to forgive if not ever forget. Every one of us is entitled to a second chance.