Gordon Elliott on horse racing return: ‘I need to step up and prove I am not a monster’

Elliott revealed his friends, concerned about his mental health, drove him to meet IHRB senior medical officer Dr Jennifer Pugh at his lowest ebb

Gordon Elliott. Picture: INPHO/Dan Sheridan

As he prepares to return to racing at the end of a six-month suspension imposed after the emergence of a photo of him sitting astride a dead horse, Gordon Elliott has revealed his gratitude for the way Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board (IHRB) senior medical officer Dr Jennifer Pugh supported him at his lowest ebb.

In an extensive interview with racingpost.com Elliott said the departure of top horses like Envoi Allen and Sir Gerhard was the lowest point of his high-profile fall from grace that left his friends worried about his mental health, concerns that led them to making contact with Pugh.

“They put me into a car and drove me to her,” Elliott recalled of his friends’ intervention.

“At that stage, I didn’t know where I wanted to go or what I wanted to do, but Jennifer made me look at things a bit differently, helped me to see that I’d be okay, no matter how bad things got.

“She was brilliant, to be honest. She came down to the yard three or four times as well and spoke to the staff individually and collectively.

“I went to bed that night, after seeing Jennifer the first time, thinking to myself: ‘Right, all of my staff are sticking by me, so I need to stick by them, and get strong for them’.

“I promised them that, if they stuck with me, I’d stand by them, and not one member of staff has left. I really couldn’t say enough about how good they have been throughout all of this.”

Elliott’s ban ends on Thursday and he admits he is nervous about how the racing public will react to his return.

“It’s something I have given a lot of thought to,” he said. “How am I going to be received when I go back racing? Going racing is something I’ve always loved doing.

“I probably go racing more than most trainers because I’m a people person. I just hope people will forgive me.”

He conceded he faces a fight to rebuild his reputation.

“From now on, I have to prove that the impression people have of me from the picture does not reflect who I am,” he said.

“For myself, for my family, for my staff and, most of all, for the industry and its supporters, I need to step up and prove to everyone that I am not a monster.”

“I made a mistake, I understand that, and I am sorry for what I did.

“A chance to move on is all I’m after now.”

*https://www.racingpost.com/