Harness Racing Victoria (HRV) strongly refutes any suggestion that there is a “New Drug Scandal to Hit the Tracks” or that the use of the performance enhancing substance Erythropoietin (EPO) or any other similar drug is “rife” in harness racing. In fact to the contrary HRV is very proud of the leading role it has taken to address the use of like substances in Australian racing.
It is HRV’s view that the so called “exclusive investigation” was poorly researched and took no account of recent facts pertaining to HRV’s drug control program. Some of these facts are spelt out below which, if included in the article, would have added some balance to the largely historical content.
As has previously been put on the public record, in 2008/09 HRV worked tirelessly on this issue collaborating with the Victorian Racing Industry laboratory, Racing Analytical Services Ltd (RASL) and other local and international racing jurisdictions and laboratories. This included Racing Victoria Ltd, the Ontario Racing Commission in Canada, the Hong Kong Jockey Club Laboratory and HFL Sport Science in the United Kingdom.
Further HRV sought the expert assistance of Dr Mike Ashenden, one of the leading blood doping researchers in the world who has been one of those responsible for developing the new “Blood Passport” testing regime in world cycling.
As a consequence of these actions HRV detected the use of Darbepoiten Alfa (DPO), a peptide variant of EPO in three horses during 2009. During the subsequent prosecutions five licensed persons were disqualified for periods ranging from three years and six months through to 10 years. Fines were also applied in addition to some of those disqualifications with one licensed person also being fined $30,000.
HRV defended all of those prosecutions vigorously however were disappointed that some of the original penalties were reduced by appellate bodies applying a civil standard to these gross indiscretions.
Since the time of the original detections HRV has collected more than 27,000 urine and blood samples for broad reaching analysis. Specifically more than 3,000 of those blood samples have been collected and analysed for the presence of EPO, DPO and other like variants, both in and out of competition, without any further evidence of its use in Victorian harness racing.
HRV is also very pleased to confirm that RASL is the first laboratory in Australia to have a fully certifiable equine confirmatory method for the presence of EPO and other like substances thanks to the establishment of their Bioanalytical Research Unit (BRU). The establishment of the BRU has been made possible through a $4 million dollar grant by the Victorian State Government which recognises the importance of maintaining a high level of integrity in the Victorian Racing Industry.
