Zarooni

chroniclandlord said:
No legal representation for Zarooni at today's hearing, and the speed at which the case is being dealt with, would indicate that he will be hung out to dry with no investigation of who else knew.
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Simon Crisford already confirmed for post-result press conference.
 
Miesque - are there valid veterinary reasons to use anabolic steroids on horses (any, not necessarily racehorses) e.g. to help recovery from injury where muscle wastage might occur?
 
Miesque said:
Not true, cascade system woud allow you administer them to horses as an off label use of human drugs as there is no licensed veterinary version. (not uncommon, often licensing is to do with cost for the manufacturer rather than lack of efficacy)
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Thanks Miesque.
 
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So from what I gather above, any horse which has ever run for Godolphin could have been pumped full or roids during the winter in Dubai, then brought back to the UK to run?

And this would be legal, just as long as they are out of the system by the time they get brought back?
 
Doesn't even have to be that elaborate. At least one form of ethylestrenol (Nitrotain) claims a withdrawal period of 48 hours (as Miesque mentioned earlier). Who knows how often it was being given whilst horses were in GB? And didn't Godolphin cut back on their wintering policy anyway?

Not sure if I've pointed this out here yet, but if Al Zarooni is telling the truth and only 15 of his 150 horses were given steroids, then the chances of the BHA testing 45 of them randomly and finding at least 11 of them is 2988/1.

So either:

a) a lot more horses were being doped

or

b) the BHA were working off intelligence as to which horses to test.

The fact that they got a positive test for a steroid with a 48hr withdrawal period might suggest the latter, but for all we know both are true.
 
The whole thing just shows how far behind racing is in terms of doping controls - embarrassing for the sport as a whole.

As for Zarooni claiming he didn't know this was against the rules of racing - at least he can claim to come from a country where it isn't illegal. This defence seemed to work quite well for Nicky Henderson in the past?
 
Its unclear whether they're allowed in training in the UAE. This piece:

http://www.thenational.ae/sport/hor...rses-recovery-from-colic-or-serious-fractures

says:

Anabolic steroids are allowed to be used in the UAE if horses are not in training and are recovering from problems such as colic surgery or serious fractures to combat muscle wastage. Racehorses must then come to race day trace-free.
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Now that might not be too far off the situation in GB. A lot depends on the definition of "in training" in the UAE. Kevin Blake goes into the GB/IRE definition at: http://www.theirishfield.ie/site/article.php?id=3046&cid=5

(As I posted last night, the problem with that piece from www.thenational.ae is that it also claims that the UAE rules are the same as Australia, where horses are allowed steroids in training as long as they're out of the system by raceday. With 48hr withdrawal rates you'd wonder what the difference is.)
 
Just listened to a report of today's hearing which involves "Sheek Mohammed" "Go Dolphin" and talks of Certify having to miss the "a thousand Guineas"

Fantastic stuff.
 
BHA statement regarding suspension of 15 Godolphin horses in the care of Mahmood Al Zarooni





Jamie Stier, Director of Raceday Operations and Regulation for the British Horseracing Authority (BHA), said:

"The BHA has today informed Godolphin, the owners of the horses in question, that the 15 horses known to have been administered with either Ethylestranol or Stanozolol have been suspended from running in races for a period of six months, with effect from Tuesday 9th April 2013.

"The length of suspension reflects the period beyond which the BHA is confident that the horses in question can have derived no performance related benefit from the administration of these prohibited substances.

The decision regarding the suspension was made by the BHA, not by the Disciplinary Panel who are hearing the enquiry. The enquiry started as scheduled at 2.30pm.


Notes to Editors:

1. This suspension has been imposed by the BHA and is separate from the Disciplinary Panel hearing involving Mahmood Al Zarooni.

2. The suspension relates to the following horses:

ARTIGIANO (USA)
BATHRAT AMAL (JPN)
CERTIFY (USA)
COMITAS
DESERT BLOSSOM (IRE)
FAIR HILL
GHOSTFLOWER (IRE)
OPINION POLL (IRE)
ORKNEY ISLAND
RESTRAINT OF TRADE (IRE)
SASHIKO
SWEET ROSE
TEARLESS
VACATIONER
VALLEY OF QUEENS (IRE)

3. The suspension will end on Tuesday 8th October 2013 and the horses will be free to race again from Wednesday 9th October 2013
 
Statement from BHA Chief Executive Paul Bittar regarding today's Disciplinary proceedings involving Mahmood Al Zarooni





“We believe that it is recognised by all who follow our sport that the circumstances in this particular case are exceptional, not only on account of the profile of the owner in question, but also the number and calibre of the horses involved. However, we also believe the outcome is an endorsement for the effectiveness of British Racing's dope testing programme.

“On April 9th representatives of the BHA visited the yard of Mahmood Al Zarooni and took samples from 45 horses as part of our testing in training sampling programme. As soon as the nature and number of positives became apparent, we recognised that there were a number of challenges for the sport and the BHA, initially in the very short term.

“The first and immediate priority was to establish the facts as to how the prohibited substances came to be present in the horses’ samples. Secondly, in view of the potential repercussions for the sport and the profile of the races for which some of the horses held entries, it was in the public’s interest, as well as that of BHA and Godolphin, to progress the Disciplinary procedures as quickly as possible.

“Both of these objectives have now been met and I would like to publicly thank the staff at the BHA and the team at HFL Sport Science who have worked around the clock on the case to achieve the outcome of today’s Disciplinary Panel hearing. This rapid resolution would also not have been possible without the full cooperation of Godolphin and Sheikh Mohammed.

“The relevant Rules in this case are explicit in that the use of anabolic steroids in horses in the care of a licensed trainer is prohibited and that strict liability for everything administered to horses while they are in training lies with the trainer. The BHA’s investigation has established that the substances in question were administered on the instruction of Mahmood Al Zarooni. The full details of this will be formally addressed in the Disciplinary Panel’s findings, to be published in due course and once they are available.

“We believe that the XXX YEAR disqualification issued to Mahmood Al Zarooni by the Disciplinary Panel, together with the six month racing restriction placed on the horses in question by the BHA, will serve to reassure the public, and the sport’s participants, that use of performance-enhancing substances in British Racing will not be tolerated and that the sport has in place a robust and effective anti-doping and medication control programme.

“The next objective for BHA is to take the necessary steps to ensure that overall confidence in the integrity of the sport is not at risk. We welcome the proactive response of Godolphin and Sheikh Mohammed in announcing their intention to review the procedures of this stable and the need to ensure that all horses formerly trained by Mahmood Al Zarooni are tested and cleared before they race again.

“The BHA will conduct the testing of the horses with the analytical work being carried out by HFL Sport Science. Godolphin have stated they will cooperate fully with this process. In addition, we will also provide advice to Godolphin of necessary changes to its procedures and controls where appropriate, and this will be supported by Godolphin’s own review.

“Naturally, the BHA will itself consider the wider issues raised by this matter and we will seek to ascertain and collate all other relevant information including where necessary interviewing other employees or contractors of Godolphin. As we do in all cases, as part of an ongoing process we will identify further areas for consideration which could be incorporated from this into our future sampling strategy.

“Finally, this case has served to highlight something that we were already aware of, in that there are inconsistencies across international racing jurisdictions regarding what substances are permitted to be used in training. While around the world, horseracing bodies quite rightly adopt a zero tolerance policy to the presence of anabolic steroids when carrying out post-race testing, the approach is not so consistent for horses in training.

“In an age of increasing international travel and competition we will put the subject on the agenda for discussion with our international colleagues.”
 
Crisford says Al Zarooni revealed 2 foremen and a vets assistant helped him with the doping. All took place after return from Dubai. The vets assistant had no idea what he was injecting. He had a direct order from the trainer.
 
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Yes, there is legal and above board uses for steroids in horses. If the horses are in or out of training makes a difference - being in the care or on the yard of a licensed trainer here seems to be the key.
 
Sheikh said:
http://www.horseandhound.co.uk/news/sheikh-mohammed-gets-six-month-ban-from-endurance-riding/

:whistle:
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Are you serious asking me if I think the use of steroids is ok? Using an agent to treat a bleeder so he can run is a million miles away from pumping a horse full of steroids which is what I consider performance enhancing in the true sense of the word.

That aside that is almost interesting link you provided and begs the question where were the orders coming from.

In a statement his trainer Abdullah bin Huzaim admitted administering the drugs to the horse without the sheikh’s knowledge.

Initially Al Zarooni gained his experience in endurance races in the desert

Sheikh Mohammed reiterated that he was appalled and angered that one of Godolphin’s Newmarket stables had violated his outfit’s ethical *standards,

In both incidents Sheikh Mohammed took measures to let us know he knew nothing of this.

Of course he never and I'm Donald Ducks father
 
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