More Testing, More Oversight
I’m not sure what to make of this latest bad news. The indictments last Thursday of 17 people for allegedly drugging horses and betting illegally are troubling, especially following the recent unrest over the matters of jockeys’ insurance and the management of the Jockeys’ Guild, as well as the investigation into jockey weights at NYRA, but there’s still too much unknown for me to get as worked up as the commentator who called the arrests a “catastrophe,” such as: police detectives and the FBI say the doping aspect of the investigation is limited to the New York area, but only two of the indictments had anything to do with doping and those with only one race. How many other horses were drugged, and how many other races might have compromised? As for the betting, were wagers ever placed after races started? How secure are American pari-mutuel pools?
I’m sure we’ll hear more about the investigation in coming weeks. Already, officials from NTRA, NYRA, and elsewhere are calling for increased testing of horses, cracking down on cheats, and ensuring the integrity of the sport. That would all be great. My fear though is that’s all we’re going to get — talk — when what we need is real, structural change. There should be uniform standards for drug testing across racing, as well as for punishing offenders and dealing with offshore betting shops. But that would require every segment of the industry to work together, and an organization, such as NTRA, to take leadership in crafting national standards that would clean up racing, and that, I’m afraid, will never happen. This scandal will pass, and five years later, another will break, and we’ll have the same, ineffectual debate all over again.
Related: “Before Thursday’s indictments involving the ‘milkshaking’ of the horse A One Rocket, the New York Racing Association was in Albany talking with the State Racing and Wagering Board about bringing milkshake testing to its three tracks” (New York Daily News); jockey Richard Migliore, who rode A One Rocket on December 18, 2003, remembers the race well (New York Post); and the investigation that hit New York shows no signs of spreading to Maryland. (Baltimore Sun)
Perhaps I’m too pessimistic: The national HBPA asked affiliates to indicate their position on the Racing Medication and Testing Consortium proposal for uniform medication and drug testing. “The consortium has made substantial progress, and no HBPA affiliates have questioned the need for uniformity in medication, drug testing, or penalties for violations.” (Blood-Horse)
