BHA chief rejects 'rancid' picture of weighing room but says racing must change

BHA chief executive Julie Harrington hailed the bravery of Bryony Frost in bringing her complaint against Robbie Dunne and promised that racing would be able to "look its participants in the eye" when having difficult conversations around cultural change in the sport.

In the wake of the guilty verdict on four charges of bullying handed down to Dunne by the independent disciplinary panel, Harrington and director of integrity Tim Naylor fielded questions from the media for half an hour.

And while Harrington studiously avoided the exact phrase "weighing room culture" in her answers, she made it clear that the sport needed to follow the example set by the ruling in the Dunne case in adhering to the same standards expected in modern society.

Harrington pointedly rejected BHA counsel Louis Weston's description of a "rancid and sour" culture among jockeys, choosing to praise the "supportive and positive" experience it provides for most riders.

But she repeated on several occasions that this was an important opportunity to move the sport forward with the introduction of an industry-wide code of conduct, something on which the BHA will pin significant hopes when it appears on the regulator's statute, potentially early in the new year.

She said: "We understand that for the vast majority of those who work in the weighing room, it's a positive, supportive and welcoming place, and we express our respect and admiration for the skills and courage of our participants.

"However in any environment there are going to be some people who don't feel comfortable and there are going to be times when lines are crossed.

"It's essential that when something does go wrong that people feel supported in calling it out and we call on everyone within the industry to recognise this."

'Absolute disgrace' – jockeys' body slams BHA over weighing room claims

When offered the alternative reaction of the Professional Jockeys Association to the outcome of the case – a PJA statement described representations of weighing room culture as "grossly inaccurate and wholly unfair" – Harrington said she did not believe the gap was unbridgeable.

"We will take our time to digest today's ruling and hopefully they will too," said Harrington, who stressed that similar issues were faced across other sports and indeed in every sector of society.

"This is the first hearing of this nature in the BHA and I think for all sports' national governing bodies you are in territory often where you are criticised.

"But I think it is important that we can look our participants – the racing public, the parents who would like their children to come into racing – in the eye, and say that we're doing the right thing for the long-term health of the sport. I'm confident that's what we've done by bringing this case."

'Important to call out misconduct'

Naylor was pressed on an apparent gulf between the BHA and the jockeys' representative body.

"As we look to become more progressive in our reforms we will continue to work very closely with the PJA and its members," said Naylor. "The vast majority of the time we will see eye to eye. Those few times we don't, we still have to have those conversations and work through it."

While both Harrington and Naylor stressed that the new code of conduct would be bolstered by the work of jockey coaches, training and development and the changes under way in updating the physical environment of weighing rooms across Britain, it is clear that plenty rests on successfully bringing the code to fruition.

"This is a coordinated effort which the industry has been very much behind, has engaged and participated in," said Naylor.

"In what is a high-octane sport the majority of times the participants do have a very high level of respect for each other. It's just those minority of cases where it's important that we call out that misconduct.

"By getting the industry to engage in that measure, I hope it's a real practical standard that we can set and accommodate and say that what has already been the case will be codified and adhered to."

Read more on this subject:

Robbie Dunne banned for 18 months for bullying and harassing Bryony Frost

Comment: weighing room culture allowed a poisonous situation to fester – it must change

Read panel's damning verdict on Robbie Dunne's bullying of Bryony Frost

Who is Robbie Dunne? From struggling conditional to weighing room 'enforcer'

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