This is Elliott’s shame, not the whole sport’s
Trainer deserves to be punished for disgusting act... not horse lovers and staff
GORDON ELLIOTT disgraced himself.
In fact, worse. In a moment he’ll regret forever, the trainer callously offered no dignity to the deceased. He should be punished and he will be.
So should stupid amateur jockey Rob James, who thought it was a giggle to climb aboard a dead horse.
But an entire sport should not be held accountable for these disgusting acts.
More importantly, neither should the hundreds of thousands of dedicated staff who love and care for their horses. People who would have been just as appalled as any member of the public by these images.
Scrub that. It would have hit them even harder because they are closer to these animals than some people are to their spouses and kids.
The lads and lassies who get out of bed at 4am every morning to feed them, tend to them and have them as pals more than anything else.
In Scotland alone, across more than 20 licensed training yards, 3000-plus are employed by the sport, putting their heart and soul into the care of the horses every waking hour.
Employees at Elliott’s yard would’ve been appalled at their gaffer’s moment of sickening stupidity. The lad or lass who spent the majority of their day nuzzling up to Morgan, the stricken horse in the picture, would have been distraught.
And if you don’t believe that, you haven’t been in a racing yard. Cheveley Park Stud took the decision to move their horses out of Elliott’s. Envoi Allen was the highest-profile departure.
Individuals would be heartbroken to see their own cherished mate shipped out of the door when they’d done nothing but love that horse.
Elliott should get his punishment but members of his staff – around 80 – at Cullentra House in County Meath should not.
That will surely be a consideration today when Irish horse racing chiefs meet to decide on his sentence.
There is a section of society who simply believe no animals should be used in sport. They believe horse racing is a form of cruelty and nothing is going to change those minds. This week has been a feeding frenzy for this collective.
Each individual has their stance and comments from Ruby Walsh’s dad Ted about how you don’t have as many winners as Elliott without giving the animals first-class treatment day in, day out just don’t wash for some after that image.
Truthfully, it’s hard to argue. In many ways it vindicates their beliefs. They will never be convinced and that’s their right to an opinion.
But that’s not the issue. The issue is some people may have looked at that Elliott picture and thought that’s par for the course for the industry.
And that type of thinking is miles out of line. It’s completely and utterly wrong. It’s almost as disrespectful as what Elliott did in his snapshot.
The whole of racing cannot be slammed into one basket because of one man’s idiocy. Even racing’s hardest critic can’t be blind to the sheer volume of individuals who love and adore these equine stars.
Elliott deserves to be punished today.
But the innocent and hardworking horse lovers and staff across the world should never, ever be mentioned in the same breath as him.