The Referrals Committee Mr. Justice Tony Hunt (in the chair), Mr. Philip Caffrey and Mr. Anthony Byrne convened at the Offices of the Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board (IHRB), The Curragh, Co. Kildare on Friday, 29^th November 2019 to consider the referral of Liam Quinlan (Rider) by Denis Egan, Chief Executive of the IHRB following Mr. Quinlan’s failure to submit to a doping control test at Galway on 2^nd August 2019.
 
Evidence was heard from Dr. Jennifer Pugh, Senior IHRB Medical Officer. The Committee also noted the case report into what occurred and transcripts of enquiries which took place at Galway on the day.
 
In her evidence, Dr. Pugh detailed her interaction with Mr. Quinlan following his failure to submit to the doping control test. She stated that Mr. Quinlan had been cooperative at all times and extremely courteous throughout the process. She added that there were personal issues which were contributory factors to Mr. Quinlan’s behavior on the day. Dr. Pugh stated that Mr. Quinlan was now engaging in a councilling programme to address these issues.
 
Dr. Pugh also confirmed that she had taken four out of competition urine samples from Mr. Quinlan (including one on Sunday, 4^th August) and in addition he had also been tested on the racecourse; all the sample results were negative. She stressed the importance of Mr. Quinlan having some structure in his life to aid his rehabilitation.
 
Patrick Kennedy, on behalf of Mr. Quinlan accepted that his client was in breach of the rule. He outlined a number of issues that Mr. Quinlan was dealing with at present and confirmed that he is currently in employment with John Patrick Ryan, trainer.
 
Having considered the evidence, the Referrals Committee accepted the guilty plea and confirmed that Mr. Quinlan was in breach of Rule 277(i). Due to exceptional circumstances, the Referrals Committee deferred the imposition of a penalty until next year pending receipt of further reports.
 
The case was presented by Cliodhna Guy, Head of Licensing, Legal and Compliance, IHRB.  Mr. Quinlan was represented by Patrick Kennedy Solicitor, Patrick J. O'Meara & Co. Solicitors, Thurles, Co. Tipperary.