Hayley Stephenson was disqualified minutes after winning the Deutz Fashions in the Field award. Photo / Dean Purcell
The teenage winner of the Fashions in the Field contest at the Ellerslie Boxing Day races will not contest her disqualification.
Hayley Stephenson, 17, was stripped of her title minutes after being announced as the supreme winner when organisers discovered that she was not yet 18. Her mother,
Diane, said they would not fight the decision.
"We don't hold it against the racing club, it's just something that happened."
The age requirement is on the website, she said, but they only saw the advertisements handed around Newmarket.
"On that it says that you can refer to the website for further information, but of course you don't do that because you think you have the information."
But she said Hayley had won a category prize last year when she was 16, and organisers spoke to her about her ineligibility then.
"They said to her, 'Look you won't be able to go into the march at the end because you don't have a driver's licence, and it does involve a car in the prize."'
Hayley got her licence this year, so thought she could participate this year.
"It's a fashion event, we didn't think there would be an age restriction.
"Clearly she wasn't trying to hide her age, she didn't think there was any need."
Many have suggested she take legal action, as the organisers should have checked when she signed up.
"The poor girl has been through enough with the whole thing and we didn't want any animosity with the racing club. They genuinely think that they've made it clear - I guess they will have a meeting and endeavour to make it more clear in the future."
One solution could have been to wait until she turned 18 in February to give her the alcohol prize.
"That wasn't a solution obviously for them for reasons we don't know."
But Mrs Stephenson said Hayley was taking it in her stride.
