STEPHEN Mahon will lodge an appeal against his four-year training ban.

Mahon had his licence withdrawn this week following a Referrals Committee hearing which found that he had neglected or failed to adequately care for up to 10 horses at his training premises in Kilcolgan, Co Galway.

One horse had to be put down immediately on veterinary advice. Others were described as injured, in pain, “emaciated” or in need of veterinary attention.

Mahon, who was represented in this case by well-known Dublin legal firm Patrick Ward Solicitors and John Rogers SC, was also ordered to pay €5,000 in costs.

Yesterday, Patrick Ward told The Irish Field that his client would be appealing the decision.

Even if Mahon fails in his appeal, he is not ‘warned off’ and can continue to work in racing. The ban is believed to be the longest of its kind ever handed out by the racing authorities to a trainer and, while Mahon can re-apply for his licence in 2025, there is no guarantee that this application would be successful.

Mistreated

In 2008 Mahon lost his trainer’s licence for a four-month period following a court case in which he was ordered to pay €34,000 to an owner whose horse Mahon was found to have mistreated.

Yesterday a spokesperson for the Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board said that this case was an outlier in terms of welfare standards.

“Equine welfare is a priority for the IHRB and is a driving factor in all our work including the carrying out of inspections,” the spokesperson said.

“On a yearly basis, the IHRB carry out upwards of 160 inspections, which now include unlicensed premises as well as licensed premises, and the concerns raised in this case are not reflective of what we see on a daily basis during our inspections or on the racecourse.”

Mahon remains a member of the Irish Racehorse Trainers Association for the time being, at least. The association’s CEO Michael Grassick said: “It will have to be discussed. It’s not something that has come up before in my time in office.”

Should Mahon lose his appeal he is likely to find his racecourse access card is no longer accepted at the track.

A spokesperson for the Association of Irish Racecourses, which issues access cards to stakeholders, explained: “We update our database weekly, to take into account any new owners or trainers, for example. We would also be notified of any licences which have been revoked or suspended.”

Chaired by Justice Tony Hunt, the Referrals Committee heard 16 hours of evidence from a total of 13 witnesses. The 16-page judgement issued this week contained shocking details of mistreatment of horses.

One horse had to be put down on the day of the inspection due to what was described as a “catastrophically injured” fetlock joint. The Referrals Committee was told that the day before the inspection, this horse had been entered to run in Ballinrobe later that week.

Another horse on the premises was reported to be “emaciated” while seven horses in an adjoining field were found to be inadequately cared for.

The Referrals Committee said there were “multiple and widespread failures to secure the welfare of animals” in the yard.