- The experienced former coach has close to 60 victories to his name
- He confessed the strange act that earned him the long suspension
- He told the inquest he did not remember the incident.
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Horse racing trainer Todd Balfour has been banned from the sport for five years for pulling down the pants of a Racing South Australia compliance officer earlier this year.
The former trainer was accused of “outwitting” the official and exposing him in front of a crowd of people at Kangaroo Island racecourse in February.
Balfour admitted to inappropriate conduct when he pulled down the officer’s pants during breathalyzer tests.
The maximum sentence for the act was 10 years, but Balfour’s 57 wins over 697 riders between 2010 and 2017 as a trainer and a brief career as a jump jockey along with his confession and apology to the officer earned him the most lenient sentence.
Todd Balfour was accused of pulling down an official’s pants while attempting to conduct breathalyzer tests at a meeting in South Australia.
Balfour also had a short career as a jockey before becoming a successful trainer between 2010 and 2017.
Balfour won 57 races as a trainer but is now banned from the racing industry for five years.
Balfour admitted breaching Australian racing rules, specifically by engaging in misconduct, inappropriate conduct and unseemly behaviour.
The report described his actions as “reprehensible and highly inappropriate.”
Anonymous sources told the Sydney Morning Herald that Balfour informed the inquiry that he did not remember pulling down the integrity officer’s pants following the consumption of alcohol in the race.
“The stewards also took into account his rectitude in the investigation, his long-standing involvement in the industry, his personal circumstances and the fact that he showed remorse for his conduct, which included an apology to Racing SA’s compliance officer,” it states. the commissioners’ report.
‘However, the stewards also considered the serious nature of the conduct, the resulting distress caused to an official, and that viewed objectively, by any reasonable person, such conduct would be considered reprehensible and extremely inappropriate.
“The stewards also took into account individual and general deterrence and furthermore took into account the fact that punishment is also an element in determining the penalty for infringements of racing rules.”
Despite the guilty plea, Balfour is expected to appeal the sentence.