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Will Sam Whaley Cohen Miss the Grand National?

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As all horse racing fans will know, April marks the start of the long awaited Grand National at Aintree – an annual even that has become a British tradition over the decades. The event runs from 7th to 9th April with the Grand Opening Day, Ladies Day, and of course the big finish with Grand National Day on the 9th April.

Many people will be taking bets on their favourites to win both at the bookies and online via betting sites such as Betway. Others will be doing sweepstakes at work or with family and friends while the lucky ones will be heading to Aintree to watch the action in person. However, one person that may not be at the big event is jockey Sam Whaley Cohen.

Possible ban for jockey

Once 7th April 2016 rolls around, there will be hordes of people from around the country gathered at the famous Aintree race course waiting eagerly and placing bets online at Betway before the starting gun. However, a possible ban means that jockey Sam Whaley Cohen may miss out on this major horseracing event.

The British Horseracing Authority has recently confirmed that the jockey may be banned for a period of seven days, and if the ban does go ahead he will have to miss out on the event. The 33 year old found himself being suspended after he prematurely stopped riding Long Run at the recent hunter chase at Carlisle.

Long Run was the Gold Cup winner at the Cheltenham races five years ago and according to officials if the jockey hadn’t prematurely stopped riding the horse he could have come in at third place instead of fifth. Unfortunately, if the ban is upheld it will cover period when amateur racing takes place at the Grand National. However, the jockey said that he plans to appeal against the ban so at present there is no certainty over whether or not he will be able to take part until a firm decision has been made.

According to Whaley-Cohen, the reason he stopped riding the horse at Carlisle was because he was worried about the animal’s health and welfare. Long Run was bred, owned and trained by the amateur jockey’s father, respected trainer Robert Whaley Cohen. He was also trained by Nicky Henderson in the past. When speaking to reporters, Sam said that the horse was his main concern adding that the main thing was that he had retired healthy and happy.

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