PAUL Murtagh has been appointed Registrar of the Irish National Hunt Steeplechase Committee following the recent retirement of Josh Byrne.

Murtagh will be responsibile for integrity matters relating to National Hunt racing including the administration of point-to-points.

Murtagh joined the Turf Club in 2005 having previously worked as an animal nutritionist for Richard

Keenan & Co. Ltd in both the UK and Ireland. He holds a Masters of Agricultural Science from UCD and a Diploma in Sports Law from the Law Society of Ireland.

During his time with the Turf Club and the IHRB, Murtagh has previously worked as a racing official and is currently Head of Raceday Operations. He takes up his new role on August 1st.

Murtagh commented: “I am delighted and honoured to have been appointed to this role and I hope to ensure Irish National Hunt racing and point-to-points continue to develop and thrive in the coming years.”

IHRB chief executive Denis Egan said: “We are delighted that Paul has been appointed to the position of Registrar of the Irish National Hunt Steeplechase Committee. I look forward to Paul continuing to make a major contribution to the integrity of the sport and to point-to-point racing in his new role.”