Top jockey loses £386k prize money after trashing villa in Covid lockdown party

An Australian jockey is facing a racing ban which could cost her up to £368k in prize money after she broke Covid rules to host an illegal party in a rented villa.

Jamie Kah held a bash at an Airbnb rental near Melbourne last month, which breached the Stay at Home rules imposed in the state of Victoria.

The 25-year-old, along with others, was not within a five-mile radius of her home and was partying after curfew.

Kah has already been slapped with a three-month ban as a result of the incident, but Racing Victoria wants to add another eight weeks onto that punishment after she was found guilty of giving false evidence.

But the jockey's lawyer Damian Sheales says the punishment should be suspended as his client faces a "world record" penalty and has already missed out on two big-earning races as a result of her current ban.

At a tribunal, Sheales said: "She took [the penalty] on the chin. She made a public statement, she has been nothing but dignified in silence since."

He added: "The penalty she’s paid is just spectacular, surely there comes a time where … enough is enough?"

Several workers had to scrub the £218-per-night villa clean after the party, with "blood everywhere" and red wine stains throughout the property.

"The place was totally trashed, an absolute mess," one cleaner told Australian outlet the Herald Sun.

Do you think a three-month racing ban was reasonable for breaching Covid rules? Let us know in the comments section.

"There was blood everywhere, on the couch. The red wine looked like it had been walked through the house."

Police had been called to the property shortly before midnight on the night of the party, with half-a-dozen people found inside who were breaching Covid rules.

Victoria Police said in a statement: "Upon arrival officers located six people inside, all allegedly outside their 5km radius and in breach of curfew."

All six were fined £2,887.55 for attending the party, while jockeys Kah, Ethan Brown, Ben Melham and Celina Gaudray were all handed a three-month ban.

Don't miss a thing with our football updates!

Want to be on the ball with all of the latest football news?

Well then sign up for the brilliant Daily Star football email newsletter!

From the latest transfer news to the agenda-setting stories, get it all in your email inbox – don't miss a thing.

How do you sign up?

It only takes a matter of seconds.

Simply type your email address into the box at the top of this article and hit 'subscribe'.

And that's it, job done. You'll receive an email with all of the top news stories every single morning.

You can find out more information on our email newsletter on this link here.

Kah apologised for her behaviour on social media and said she "deserved the penalty handed down by the stewards".

"I am deeply embarrassed and disappointed with myself," she said on Twitter.

"There is no excuse for what I have done and I have let myself down, my family and friends, the racing industry and all Victorians who are doing the right thing in this lockdown."

But she pleaded not guilty to charges of lying to stewards during their investigation, and was accused of omitting details of who else had attended the party.

Source: Read Full Article