NSW trainer banned for 12 months over four charges

Grafton trainer Elizabeth Giggins has been handed a 12-month disqualification after Racing NSW stewards found her guilty on four charges, including failing to obtain veterinary treatment for an injured horse and providing false evidence at an official inquiry.

Stewards concluded the inquiry via teleconference on 13 April 2026, following a series of incidents involving the welfare of Giggins’ racehorse Casual Cat between late November 2025 and early 2026.

The most serious findings related to the condition of Casual Cat, who was suffering from a swollen near hind leg, lameness and signs of infection. Despite her own attempts to treat the horse failing, stewards found Giggins did not seek veterinary advice or treatment between 2 December and 8 December 2025 — a period during which veterinary attention was necessary for the welfare of the horse.

Giggins was also found to have failed to keep accurate treatment records between 5 December 2025 and 25 February 2026. Medications administered to Casual Cat during that period — including Phenylbutazone, Depocillin, Gentamicin, Flunixin, Methadone and Betamox — were not recorded by midnight on the days they were given, as required under the rules of racing.

A third charge found Giggins had permitted stablehand Ms P. Mathieson to carry out duties at her registered stable while Mathieson’s licence was under full suspension, across a period spanning 26 November 2025 to 24 January 2026.

Most damaging to her case was a fourth charge finding that she provided false and misleading evidence on multiple occasions during the official stewards inquiry at Grafton Racecourse on 19 March 2026. Giggins pleaded not guilty to all four charges.

Stewards imposed a four-month disqualification for the welfare failure, a further four months for permitting the suspended stablehand to work, and a further four months for the false evidence charge, with all three periods ordered to be served cumulatively. A $1,000 fine was also issued for the record-keeping breach. Stewards noted that Giggins’ not guilty pleas meant no reduction in penalty was applied.

The 12-month disqualification commenced on 13 April 2026 and will expire on 13 April 2027. Giggins has been granted seven days to continue caring for her horses, though she is not permitted to start any horse in a jump out, barrier trial or race during that period. She has been advised of her right to appeal.