NO CHANGES to the rules which allowed Golan Go run at Ballinrobe on Monday evening are being considered by the Turf Club, even though the horse’s trainer, Paul Magnier, described the incident as “an integrity of the sport issue”.

Golan Go, backed from 20 to 1 to 8 to 1 for an apprentice handicap, was switched from a favourable draw on the rails to a stall on the outside after getting upset at the start and being taken out of its allotted starting position.

Magnier yesterday insisted the horse should have been withdrawn, describing Golan Go as “traumatised” by the incident which left his original stall unusable.

“He is normally a quiet horse but something upset him,” Magnier said. “He didn’t break out of the gate. He had to be broken out of the gate with a lump hammer and he should have been an automatic non-runner.

“Under what authority does the starter have to assign a new stall to a horse?” Magnier queried. “My point is that this is an integrity of the sport issue. If the integrity of the sport has been compromised for one second, the horse should not have been allowed run.”

There has been an angry reaction from some punters to the incident which saw Golan Go break slowly from his new stall and finish unplaced. The horse was examined by a vet beforehand and was allocated the next available stall.

The Turf Club yesterday defended its rules on starting procedures and chief executive Denis Egan said there were no plans to amend them.

“A horse may not necessarily start from its allocated stall due to varying factors, such as in this case, or more commonly when horses are withdrawn on the day resulting in the horses allotted stalls being filled by horses which are drawn higher,” Egan said.

“There were no rules broken at Ballinrobe and a fair start was effected.”