John ‘Shark’ Hanlon to start five-month suspension from training on December 1 as he fails in attempt to have ban deferred after footage showed one of his horseboxes carrying a dead horse

John ‘Shark’ Hanlon will be suspended for five months on December 1 after failing to get the suspension extended until next spring.

Hanlon, the trainer of King George VI’s hero Hewick, was convicted by the Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board (IHRB) of committing an offence which ’caused significant damage to the integrity, good conduct and good reputation of equestrian sport.’

They suspended him for 10 months, five of which were suspended, after images circulated online in June of a dead horse being transported through Paulstown, County Kilkeeny, in its trainer’s uncovered horsebox, with its carcass visible to the public.

The severity of the sentence – which also included a €2,000 fine – shocked Hanlon and he has appealed the decision. He also presented his case to the IHRB that, as a small stable, an immediate ban would have a catastrophic impact.

There have been cases in recent months, most notably that of Cheltenham Festival winner Tony Martin, where suspensions have been delayed following the findings of a hearing. Hanlon has specifically requested that his suspension be extended to 1 April 2025.

The Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board (IHRB) found that Hanlon had committed an offence which ’caused significant damage to the integrity, good conduct and good reputation of the sport of horse racing.’

But the IHRB, which had heard his arguments this week, rejected the proposal outright. It means that if Hewick, the horse who cost €850 but has earned more than €650,000, has to defend his title at Kempton on Boxing Day, he will do so for another trainer.

The IHRB said in a statement: “The Committee concluded that it did not see any evidence in the material submitted that would justify a departure from the original proposal that the entry into force of the sanctions should be 1 December 2024.

The Committee recognised (initially) that these sanctions would be damaging to Mr Hanlon in a number of ways. However, there was nothing in his circumstances that distinguished him from those of other trainers who had been placed in the same position by similar decisions in other cases.

Hanlon insisted it was an unfortunate mistake that the horse’s carcass was put on display

‘These cases formed the basis for the Committee’s original proposal to defer the sanction until 1 December 2024. Deferring a five- or ten-month sanction (depending on Mr Hanlon’s final approach) for over six months would disproportionately dilute the effect of the withdrawal sanction.

‘The Committee has therefore confirmed that the sanctions imposed in the original decision will enter into force on 1 December 2024.’

Hanlon, a colourful character who played a key role in the first episode of racing documentary series Champions: Full Gallop, is devastated by the impact of the June incident and insists it was an unfortunate mistake to put the horse’s carcass on display.

He had tried to cover the trailer with a tarpaulin, but it had come loose, exposing the animal. The three-judge panel of the IHRB, led by Mr Justice Tony Hunt, was initially withering in their condemnation.

Once the ban comes into effect, Hanlon will no longer be allowed to visit any racecourse in Ireland or Britain and will no longer be allowed to speak to – or give instructions to – jockeys or trainers about the horses on his property.