Post #2 of the day:
Trainer to Congress: Racing is ‘chemical warfare’
By JOSEPH WHITE, AP Sports Writer
10 hours, 0 minutes ago


AP - Jun 18, 3:04 pm EDT 1 of 9 Horse Racing Gallery WASHINGTON (AP)—Testifying before Congress, Hall of Fame trainer Jack Van Berg summed up thoroughbred racing’s woes in two words: “chemical warfare.”

“The present rules permitting the use of steroids and other drugs have comprised the integrity of horse racing and has been a major factor in attendance and for interest falling to an all-time low,” Van Berg told the House Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade, and Consumer Protection. “Crowds at most of these tracks, you could shoot a cannon through and not hit anybody.”

The use of performance-enhancing drugs took a big hit at Thursday’s hearing, which was called after Eight Belles broke down and was euthanized at the Kentucky Derby last month. All of the witnesses spoke in favor of banning such substances, although the consensus was far from clear on how best to achieve that goal as well as other reforms in a sport lacking an authoritative, central governing body.

“We need a league and a commissioner. We need action, please. Congress, help,” said Jess Jackson, owner of 2007 Horse of the Year Curlin.


“The last thing this industry needs is another layer of bureaucracy. A ‘Department of Horse-land Security’ funded by yet another tax on our long-suffering customers is not what we need,” said Alex Waldrop, president of the National Thoroughbred Racing Association.

In between those opposing points of view was Jockey Club president Alan Marzelli, who favored the establishment of a national governing body without government intervention.

The congressman most proactive in his interest in the sport—Rep. Ed Whitfield of Kentucky, the subcommittee’s ranking Republican—suggested that Congress was ready to act. Whitfield said lawmakers can use leverage under the Interstate Horseracing Act of 1978, which grants simulcasting rights that now account for much of the industry’s profits. A law could be passed, for example, that withholds simulcast money from states that don’t adhere to federally mandated guidelines.

“Mr. Waldrop has the very best intentions, but he does not have the authority to do anything,” Whitfield said. “We are going to be looking at some legislation to deal with this.”

Deteriorating bloodlines, due to inbreeding, were also discussed as a cause for concern. Witnesses noted that horses wear out much more quickly than the thoroughbreds of past decades.

Illinois Democrat Jan Schakowsky, the subcommittee’s vice chairwoman, said Eight Belles was a “genetic disaster waiting to happen,” a point she made by displaying a chart of what she called the horse’s “fragile bloodline.”

Others pointed to new surveys, including one by The Associated Press, that have discovered thousands of racing-related horse deaths in recent years.

“We are a rudderless ship,” said longtime breeder Arthur Hancock. “The way we’re going, we will all end up on the rocks.”

The lack of conformity in the sport is a result of its lack of structure. Racing is essentially run by 38 sets of rules—one for each state in which racing takes place.

“Imagine if the NFL were set up to permit each state to field as many pro teams as it wanted, play as many games as it wanted all year long, and set its own individual football rules. … Horse racing has been set up in this fashion,” ESPN analyst Randy Moss said.

Jockey Club president Marzelli offered hope by pointing out that its safety panel two days ago called for a sweeping ban on anabolic steroids. He expects all horse racing states to adopt the ban.


Witnesses for House Commerce, …

AP - Jun 19, 1:30 pm EDT
“We are confident that 2008 will be the last year in which anabolic steroids will be permitted in our sport during training and racing,” Marzelli said.

That would have an effect on the methods used by the trainer of Big Brown, the Triple Crown favorite that finished a stunning last in the Belmont Stakes on June 7. Rick Dutrow, who gave a legal steroid to Big Brown through April, was expected tell Congress his side of the story in person, but was a no-show.

Dutrow on Wednesday told the AP that he was too ill to attend, but he remained on the witness list—there was even a symbolic name card for him at the table—because he apparently failed to tell those in charge.

“I’m disappointed by his absence,” Schakowsky said. “I’m disappointed that he did not feel the need to notify the subcommittee of his decision.”

Dutrow did provide a statement in which he discussed his checkered record, including his use of anabolic steroids on horses.

“My observation is that it helps the horses eat better,” the statement said. “Their coats brighten. They’re more alert. It helps them train.”

Dutrow added that “if steroids are banned in the United States, we’ll stop using them.”

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Story/photos source: Yahoo
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