Harness Racing Victoria (HRV) Stewards have issued charges against licensed trainer Cassandra O’Brien under Australian Harness Racing Rule (AHRR) 196A(1) which states:
A person shall not administer or cause to be administered to a horse any prohibited substance
(i) for the purpose of affecting the performance or behaviour of a horse in a race or of preventing its starting in a race; or
(ii) which is detected in any sample taken from such horse prior to or following the running of any race.
It is alleged that Ms O’Brien administered or caused to be administered alkalinising agents to the horse ‘Graceful Art’, for the purpose of affecting its performance at Ouyen on 22 March 2020.
Ms O’Brien has been issued with a further charge, in the alternate, for presenting ‘Graceful Art’ to race at Ouyen on 22 March 2020 when not free of alkalinising agents, a prohibited substance when evidenced by a total carbon dioxide (TCO2) concentration in excess of 36 millimoles per litre in plasma.
The charges will be heard by the Victorian Racing Tribunal (VRT) on a date to be fixed.
