4 October 2017
On October 3rd 2017, the Executive Council of the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities (IFHA) unanimously approved a change to its International Agreement on Breeding, Racing and Wagering (IABRW), as recommended by its International Harmonisation of Race Day Rules Committee (IHRRC), to establish a model interference rule.
This new model rule was drafted following a broad consultation led by the IFHA. The France Galop board decided to ratify these provisions.
However, at the request of the French representatives, dangerous riding can still cause the demotion or disqualification of the horse. Under the new international model rule, a horse would only be demoted if the interference was deemed to have prevented a rival horse from finishing in front it, whereas until then, by French standards, a horse could be demoted if he had deprived another horse of a better placing or prize-money at the finish.
The implementation in France of these new rules requires the harmonization of the existing provisions, which will be implemented by the end of the year, and the exact date of their coming into effect will be specified then.