Waley-Cohen ban upheld after appeal Sam Waley-Cohen will not feature in the Crabbie's Grand National at Aintree after he lost his appeal against a seven-day ban he received at Carlisle on Sunday for his ride on now-retired former Gold Cup winner Long Run. Waley-Cohen sent his mount straight into the lead on what was his first start for 672 days and while he jumped well for much of the three-mile journey, a couple of significant errors led to him coming under pressure. Long Run looked sure to finish third after jumping the final fence, but Waley-Cohen appeared to stop riding for a few strides after the last before pushing him out again, being passed by Barachois Silver and Durban Gold and beating just one rival home. Long Run was retired on the spot, while Waley-Cohen was found guilty of failing to take all reasonable and permissible measures to obtain the best possible placing in that he failed to ride out on a horse that could have finished third. Having viewed the film of the race and heard all the evidence, a British Horseracing Authority disciplinary panel, while accepting Long Run was tiring, felt that he could have finished third - but for the fact that Waley-Cohen stopped riding for 12 strides on the run-in. The panel upheld the verdict of the local stewards, and Waley-Cohen will be out of action from April 3 to 5, April 7, 9, 11 and 12. The dates of the suspension include the Grand National and the Fox Hunters' Chase at Aintree. The panel ordered his deposit be forfeited as no new evidence was produced, other than that which was considered by the Carlisle stewards on the day. Waley-Cohen is the most successful rider in modern history over the National fences at Aintree, winning six times, including the Topham Handicap Chase over the daunting obstacles 12 months ago. Although he will miss the Fox Hunters' and National, Waley-Cohen can still ride in the Topham on April 8, where he could partner Warne, on whom he won the Fox Hunters' in 2014. Waley-Cohen said he was "saddened" by the disciplinary panel's decision. He tweeted: "Saddened by BHA's decision. Thank you for all the support and kind messages. Time to move on."
