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A veteran harness racing driver who flicked a horse whip between a female colleague’s thighs and told her to “take a chill pill” has copped a ban from the sport.
A veteran harness racing identity who flicked a horse whip between the thighs of a female colleague has failed to have his three-month driving ban thrown out.
Michael Bellman appealed his driving suspension despite pleading guilty to “interfering improperly” with the woman when he whipped her in the stables at a Geelong Harness Racing meeting and said, “Where is your face mask?”
The young driver had her back to Mr Bellman at the time and was putting gear on a horse, on October 9, 2020.
“Greatly upset and angered by his actions with the whip”, she reported him to the stewards.
Mr Bellman later said he was “gobsmacked” by the woman’s reaction and told her to “just take a chill pill”.
He was ordered by the Victorian Racing Tribunal (VRT) to serve a three-month suspension in August, but appealed that decision in the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT).
But VCAT senior member Jonathan Smithers this week upheld the racing body’s decision to ban him, noting the power imbalance between the older male driver and his younger female victim, whose intimate personal space he invaded.
“The connotations of flicking a whip between the thighs of a woman from behind cannot be ignored — even if at the time, it was done carelessly or without much thought as to the import of such an action,” Senior member Smithers said.
He also found it was “necessary” to send a message to the industry “that conduct of this type is not acceptable, and will attract an appropriate sanction”.
While finding Mr Bellman was entitled to credit for his guilty plea, Senior Member Smithers ordered that he serve the three-month driving suspension, as originally imposed by the VRT.
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