Anabolic steroid policy on course for March
“We are naturally pleased to have reached consensus with all parties regarding the outstanding issues."
An enhanced, zero-tolerance policy regarding the use of anabolic steroids in horseracing is on course for March 2, 2015 the British Horseracing Authority has announced.
The announcement follows clarification and consensus being reached with the National Trainers Federation (NTF), Thoroughbred Breeders' Association (TBA), and the Racehorse Owners Association (ROA) on certain elements relating to the revised policy.
These issues led to a short delay in the policy's introduction, from January to March, and included the definition of "responsible person" - ie. the individual with the responsibility for ensuring that a horse is not administered with an anabolic steroid.
Jamie Stier, Director of Raceday Operations and Regulation for BHA, said: “The implementation of an entirely new and far reaching set of anti-doping Rules has been a complex process. We thank the ROA, NTF and TBA for their input throughout this process and their support for the principles behind the enhanced policy and the decision to delay the implementation.
“We are naturally pleased to have reached consensus with all parties regarding the outstanding issues and, while it was disappointing not to implement the policy on January 1, it was certainly the right decision not to rush the introduction of the Rules until consensus was reached.”
The policy aims to ensure that British Racing remains at the helm of tackling an issue that ranks amongst the biggest threats faced by all international sports.
Key elements of the policy include: that a racehorse must never be administered with an anabolic steroid at any time from birth to retirement; greater powers for BHA in terms of access for testing registered horses; the requirement for horses to be registered from a younger age, and for BHA to be aware of their whereabouts at all times; a more stringent 14 months stand-down period for horses found to have been administered with anabolic steroids; and greater controls on horses running in Great Britain from international jurisdictions.
BHA say that they will be releasing further details regarding the implementation of new rules ahead of the implementation date.
With Strangles Awareness Week just around the corner (5-11 May), vets are being encouraged to share a survey about the disease with their horse-owning clients.
