Crack jockey Carberry banned for 30 days

Carberry, who has ridden 11 Cheltenham Festival winners, is banned from November 25 until January 24.

Top National Hunt jockey Paul Carberry was banned on Wednesday for 30 days by the Irish Turf Club for failing a breath test for the second time in his career.

The 35-year-old Irishman - who won the 1999 Grand National on Bobbyjo trained by his father Tommy - was also fined 5,000 euros after failing the breath test at Naas racecourse on October 31.

Carberry, who has ridden 11 Cheltenham Festival winners, is banned from November 25 until January 24 and the first meeting he will be available to ride at upon his return is at Thurles, County Tipperary, on January 28.

His solicitor said that he was considering whether to appeal.

- At this stage, Paul wishes to reflect and consider the decision. He has a period of seven days in which he can appeal, should he wish to do so. This is a decision which I will discuss with him - said Andrew Coonan.

However, the Irish Turf Club made no bones over how seriously they had taken his offence.

- Having considered the evidence, the committee noted the seriousness of the offence and the fact that it was Mr Carberry's second such offence - read a statement by the body.

- In arriving at their decision the referrals committee was also conscious of their role in ensuring the continued safety of racing, which inherently contains dangers.

- They took into account assurances given by Mr Carberry's solicitor in relation to certain matters.

- Having taken everything into consideration, the committee fined Paul Carberry 5,000 euros and suspended him for 30 race days. -

However Noel Meade, for whom Carberry is stable jockey, believed that the rider had been harshly treated which will see him unable to ride for the handler at the lucrative Leopardstown meeting over Christmas.

- It seems pretty harsh, especially as it's during the time of the best Irish racing in January - said Meade.

- We'll just have to work our way around it. -

Aside from it not being his first offence Carberry - winner of 40 Grade One races in his career - has been in hot water before having served a two month prison term for an incident that took place on a flight from Malaga to Dublin in 2005.