Former odds-compiler and race planner Feidhlim Cunningham appointed new Irish trainers' association chief executive

Feidhlim Cunningham has been appointed the new chief executive of the Irish Racehorse Trainers' Association (IRTA), replacing Ryan McElligott who has departed the role to become race planner for Kia Joorabchian's Amo operation.

Cunningham is a former odds compiler with Paddy Power who also spent four years as race planner for Gavin Cromwell.

Speaking about his new job, Cunningham said: "It will be a challenge, but I'm looking forward to it. It's quite a fragile time for the industry, but I'm going into the job with plenty of enthusiasm and looking forward to getting stuck in."

He added of his background: "I worked in the betting industry with Paddy Power for a few years and I was racing manager for Gavin Cromwell for four years as well. In the last couple of years, I've been dealing with sponsorships so I would like to think I have a broad view of the industry, not just the trainers' side of things, but the commercial side of things as well.

"It's a challenging time for the industry as a whole right now but, hopefully, going forward some of the stakeholders can come together a bit better."

Accounts filed by the IRTA last month show the organisation is €2 million in debt and cannot afford to pay €300,000 to Chris Gordon, the head of security for the Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board, or his legal costs of an estimated €1m, as it was ordered to do after losing a libel case in 2020.

Gordon sued the IRTA as he felt he had been subjected to an "orchestrated and severe campaign" against his good name and his claims were unanimously upheld by a jury after a 30-day trial. He was awarded €300,000 in damages as well as legal costs.

The IRTA is funded through subscriptions and a percentage of prize winnings distributed through Horse Racing Ireland.

Read this next:

Irish trainers' association €2m in debt and unable to pay Chris Gordon after losing libel case against former IHRB security chief 

The Racing Post is now available to follow on WhatsApp channels!

Follow Racing Post Insider on WhatsApp and you can now start receiving messages and alerts for the latest news, tips, insights, live reactions and much more. Click the group link and get Racing Post notifications straight to your phone via WhatsApp.