View Full Version : DRUGS IN UTAH.
Blood Transfusion Equipment Found in Utah Home
February 28, 2002 06:09 PM ET Reuters
SALT LAKE CITY (Reuters) - Workers cleaning a home rented to cross-country skiers during the recent Olympic Winter Games found several bags containing blood transfusion equipment, the Salt Lake City Organizing Committee (SLOC) said Thursday.
The equipment could have been be used for "blood packing," which occurs when athletes freeze their own blood and inject it later, giving them more red blood cells to carry oxygen and improve their performance. The procedure is against Olympic rules.
The house was rented to an Austrian cross-country team, but officials stressed that they were not accusing anyone from the that team.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) said DNA testing would be carried out to find the identify of anyone who used the equipment.
Sunday, the last day of the Games, Johann Muehlegg of Spain and Russia's Larisa Lazutina were stripped of gold medals after testing positive for taking the blood-booster darbepoetin.
The cleaners, who found the equipment Tuesday, contacted the real-estate agent who rented the home, who in turn contacted the Wasatch County Sheriff and SLOC.
Sheriff Mike Spanof of Wasatch County, who gathered the evidence, turned it over to SLOC and is waiting for the analysis to determine whether controlled substances were involved. A spokeswoman in the sheriff's office referred calls to SLOC.
The cleaners allegedly found the bags in the back of a closet in the house, which sleeps about 10 people. The plastic bags contained several blood transfusion bags and blood transfusion sets with blood residue as well as glucose bottles and vitamins.
SLOC's Doping Control photographed the material, sealed it and then turned it over to Dr. Charles Rich, a representative of the International Olympic Committee Medical Commission, for further investigation.
The rented home is in Midway, Utah, near Soldier Hollow where cross country and biathlon events were held during the Feb 8-24 Games.
AND IN BELGIUM!
Cyclist questioned over illegal drugs
28 February, 2002 14:31 GMT
By Bart Crols
TERMONDE, Belgium (Reuters) - Belgian police have questioned cyclist Frank Vandenbroucke about illegal performance-enhancing drugs found during a search of his house, a public prosecutor has said.
Vandenbroucke, who has been fired by his team, was conditionally released and not arrested.
"He is suspected of possessing illegal hormonal products," public prosecutor Christian Dufour told a news conference on Thursday.
The 27-year-old rider is accused of receiving the drugs from a horse breeder who was linked to the 1998 Tour de France doping scandal, the biggest in the history of professional cycling.
Vandenbroucke, who had been bidding to make a comeback this season after two years out with depression, was released at midday on Thursday after being questioned overnight. He also underwent a urine test.
The director of his Domo Farm-Frites team, Patrick Lefevere, said the team had fired the cyclist.
"He (Vandenbroucke) has been immediately dismissed from the team. I had no other choice," Lefevere told RTBF television.
The prosecutor said Vandenbroucke had refused to discuss the products found in his house, except to say they were intended for his dog.
The investigation was sparked by the arrest of French horse breeder Bernard Sainz, 58, who was picked up for speeding and driving an uninsured car in Belgium early on Wednesday.
Police found syringes and "products of suspicious origin" in the boot of the car, the prosecutor said. The results of tests on the material found in Sainz's car are due next week.
Such a search was exactly how cycling's biggest doping scandal broke during the 1998 Tour de France, when a trainer's car was stopped in Ireland and found to be stuffed with drugs.
Sainz, who is charged with possessing illegal hormonal products, told police he had spent the night in Vandenbroucke's house. Police searched the cyclist's home on Wednesday and found morphine, clenbuterol and the blood-boosting drug EPO.
If convicted Sainz could face up to five years in jail.
Dufour said other people could be questioned in connection with the investigation, "It's possible, but absolutely not certain."
Vandenbroucke was held for questioning by French police three years ago after he was alleged to have bought drugs from Sainz but later released.
AND IN SOCCER.
FIFA considering blood tests at World Cup
28 February, 2002 08:14 GMT
By Alastair Himmer
TOKYO (Reuters) - Tough anti-doping measures, including the introduction of blood tests, could be in place to deter players from using banned substances at the World Cup this summer, FIFA has said.
FIFA General Secretary Michel Zen-Ruffinen also told reporters in Tokyo that an independent disciplinary panel would decide punishments for players who test positive in South Korea and Japan.
"For the first time, doping offences will be dealt with by a three-man disciplinary committee in charge of dealing with the sanctions for offenders," he said on Thursday.
At previous World Cups, the FIFA organising committee was responsible for deciding punishments for players found to have used performance-enhancing drugs.
FIFA medical experts, who would provide the disciplinary panel with a written report on the type of substance used by the player, said that they are giving serious consideration to bringing in blood testing at the World Cup.
"We are studying darbepoetin and thinking of implementing similar procedures to those used in Salt Lake. We might even introduce blood sampling at the World Cup," said Jiri Dvorak, a member of FIFA's sports medical committee.
Darbepoetin, similar to the banned blood-boosting agent erythropoietin (EPO), hit the headlines at the recent Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City when three cross-country skiers, including Spain's triple gold medallist Johan Muehlegg, tested positive for the performance-enhancing drug.
AND IN CRICKET
Rummans handed one-month drugs ban
28 February, 2002 16:08 GMT
MELBOURNE (Reuters) - New South Wales player Graeme Rummans has been banned for one month and fined $1,000 by the Australian Cricket Board (ACB) for failing a drugs test.
The ACB announced on February 21 that Rummans, 25, had tested positive for the masking agent probenecid.
He was tested before a New South Wales state team practice session in December.
"I accept the decision to suspend me until the 24th of March and the fine of (US $1,000)," Rummans said, reading from a prepared statement after a seven-hour hearing with the ACB's Anti-Doping Committee.
"I'm glad that the hearing acknowledged that I have never taken any performance-enhancing drugs and look forward to finishing off the season with my (Sydney) district club St George.
"I would like to thank the committee for saying that I am a man of honesty and integrity and accepting my use of probenecid was innocent and that I never set out to mislead or cheat anyone.
"Several very high profile cricket figures went into bat for me on this issue and this is something that I'll never forget."
The ACB said there had been mitigating circumstances to consider in the case.
"It is clear that Graeme took probenecid in contravention of the ACB Anti-Doping Policy," ACB chief executive James Sutherland said in a statement.
"It is also apparent that there are mitigating circumstances surrounding its administration and the committee has taken these into account in determining the penalty.
"The committee has also taken into account that Graeme was not seeking an unfair advantage in taking this drug."
In 21 matches in the Australian interstate four-day competition, the left-hander has made 857 runs at an average of 29, including one century, and taken five wickets at 24.
Rummans has played six interstate one-day matches this season, scoring 177 runs at 35.40.
The ACB told the New South Wales selectors last week not to consider Rummans for the interstate one-day final, which NSW won against Queensland in Brisbane on Sunday.
Western Australian fast bowler Duncan Spencer was suspended by the ACB for 18 months in April last year after testing positive for the banned anabolic steroid nandrolone.
Horny Harry
03-03-2002, 22:59
Far out...and I thought I was on a different planet...sounds like sports in this day and age is like rock and roll nightclubs in the 60's...
AND IN JOCKEYS.
http://www.asianracing.nu/ubb/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic&f=6&t=000015
Olympian Task by - Date Posted: 4/2/02 3:01:04 PM Last Updated: 4/2/02 3:01:04 PM
By Barry Irwin -- Racing folks viewing the telecast of the Winter Olympics are forgiven for shaking in their slippers after two long-distance skiers were stripped of gold medals. Officials DQ'd the skiers when tests made it clear that the red blood cell count of the athletes had been enhanced chemically. An abnormally high red blood cell count makes it possible for muscles to utilize more oxygen, thereby delaying fatigue, a handy asset for an athlete involved in endurance sports.
Shaking commenced when the commentator revealed the illegal substance used was darbepoetin, an erythropoietin-like drug that reportedly is 10 times stronger than EPO. The new drug of choice, like many of its modern predecessors, was designed for humans, in this case to aid kidney patients with anemia.
A lot has been written recently about whether use of illegal drugs in horse racing is rampant. Those who say a problem does not exist ask those who believe one does to prove it.
Therein lies a Catch-22 whose main beneficiaries are those who cheat.
I would like to suggest a new angle from which to gauge whether illegal drug use is likely, as well as a way to deal with the problem.
For those who seek a smoking gun, consider that every drug which has found its way into horse racing was first used in track and field or cycling.
Clenbuterol? Track and field had it first. Steroids? Track and field again. Creatine? Mark McGwire you say? Hardly. Track and field again. EPO? Cyclists were first.
Late last year a test reportedly was developed to detect use of EPO. But, alas, darbepoetin was ready to supplant EPO as the blood-doping chemical of choice among human athletes.
Darbepoetin is not a myth dreamed up by a gambler who lost a bet, nor is it an excuse used by a horse owner after his horse got beat. The drug is real and is being used by runners, cyclists, and skiers.
Darbepoetin improves endurance, as has been evidenced by long-distance runners, cyclists, and skiers. There is a long-held notion that no illegal substance exists that can make a horse run faster than it is capable of. Darbepoetin and EPO do not make a horse run faster, but allow a horse to delay going into oxygen debt and decelerate at a slower rate.
Any horseman who has chosen to use EPO has gotten away with it.
Trainers, jockeys, owners, and bettors are all aware of the upward spikes in form of horses that suddenly re-break at the eighth pole. It is not their imaginations.
Are there knowledgeable horsemen who believe that high-profile trainers with outrageously high win percentages might be using EPO? Yes, and I am among them.
So, here is my point: it should not be considered a longshot that these drugs are being used in horse racing. Based on the historical precedent of drugs coming from human athletics, it would be a longshot if they are not being used!
Darbepoetin is a landmark drug in the constant battle between the regulators and participants, in which the cheaters invariably have been a jump ahead of the law, which is why it has never been easy to catch the bad guys.
The Winter Olympics may wind up being remembered not so much for Sarah Hughes as for the first important stand by the law against the cheaters. The maker of darbepoetin, in a glorious, if rare, act of responsible behavior, devised a test for detection of this new drug concurrent with the drug's development. The drug maker kept the test a secret and supplied it to the Olympic organizers, allowing them to take the cheaters by surprise.
Failing such responsible actions by other drug makers, what is the way to end the Catch-22?
My suggestion for ending the cycle of cheaters outrunning the law is this: horse racing needs to create the funding to gather samples of blood/urine and freeze them to give the law the time it needs for its detective work. When, at a later date, it is determined who the bad guys are, don't just fine them, but rule them off the Turf. A strong message like that would narrow the gap between those who cheat and the law.
Barry Irwin is the president of Team Valor.
Copyright © 2002 The Blood-Horse, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
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SYDNEY, April 22 AAP -
The NSW Thoroughbred Racing Board (TRB) today issued a warning to trainers regarding the use of the prohibited substance trometamol.
The TRB advised that Australian racing laboratories' screening methods are capable of detecting the presence of the trometamol in race day samples.
Trometamol is otherwise known as tris buffer, tromethamine or trimethylol aminomethane.
Trometamol is a buffering agent and is contained in the registered liquid electrolyte preparation Neutrolene Plus, a product that is freely available and widely used in racing stables throughout the country.
Trainers were warned not to administer Neutrolene Plus to horses that are close to racing, and reminded that any preparations containing alkalinising and buffering agents should not be administered within 24 hours of racing.
Trometamol may also be contained in other products whose administration to racehorses should be avoided altogether.
For further advice on the use of products containing trometamol, trainers should contact the TRB Veterinary Department on (02) 8344-5050 or stewards on (02) 9694-6200. AAP TURF cw
cheesebeast
07-06-2002, 04:05
This is from Phoenix on the Japan thread
NEW YORK - Racing officials said Tuesday that the first effective test for erythropoietin, the blood-enhancing agent commonly known as EPO, is nearly ready for regular use at racing laboratories.
The test, which had so far proved elusive to drug-testing officials in many sports around the world, would give racing a powerful tool to combat a drug that many horsemen and regulators say is being widely abused in racing. EPO, which is marketed under trade names like Epogen and Procrit, is thought to improve a horse's performance by boosting the number of oxygen-carrying red blood cells produced by the spleen.
"The toughest part is done," said one racing official who spoke on the condition of anonymity. "They just have to refine the methodology a little bit and then distribute it to all the other labs."
The test is being developed jointly by Dr. George Maylin of Cornell University in New York, Dr. Ken McKeever of Rutgers University in New Jersey, and Dr. Phil Lorimer of the New Jersey State Police laboratory. The scientists, who have received financial grants from the racing industry to perform the research, declined to speak about the progress of the test.
A lab scientist who spoke on condition of anonymity said that the test had succeeded in detecting antibodies produced by a horse's immune system in response to an EPO injection. The scientist said that the test "needed some small refinements," but was otherwise nearly ready to be distributed to other labs. The labs would then determine if the results could be duplicated before bringing the test into official use.
Also, the scientist said that a different test, one that looks for an increase in transferrin receptors, was being aggressively explored as well. The receptors, which bind proteins together in order to ease the transportation of iron in the body, generally increase in a horse several hours after EPO is injected, and the levels stay elevated for weeks after use, the scientist said. The transferrin receptor test would give regulators a chance to detect EPO abuse before a horse runs.
As reports of blood doping have gathered strength over the past two years, racing regulators have struggled to come up with an accurate test to detect EPO and similar drugs, such as darbepoietin. The governing bodies of human endurance sports, including cycling, long-distance running, and cross-country skiing, have also encountered difficulties in establishing a test accurate enough to withstand legal challenges.
Cheers,
Phoenix
cheesebeast
09-06-2002, 06:37
alyingthief
Journeyman
Registered: Oct 2001
Location:
Posts: 72
there's a well-known trainer in SoCal, affectionately known throughout the good ole USA, as "the juice man". now, this here juice man will claim a horse, and his beyers will improve by 20 to 30000 pts, in a miraculously short length of time, like two weeks. occasionally, one of this here trainer's miracles will be claimed away, and in its next race, it's back to its previous habits, and the beyers are down 20 to 30000 pts. sometimes, the juiceman will be so delighted in the character of a charge, he'll claim him back, and behold! 20 to 30000 pts improvement.
this here trainer was an understudy in the Xx.... Yy.... training camp, so maybe he's able to perform these feats of magic through superior skill. on the other hand, this here trainer is a former veterinarian, they say, and has been seen with a kit bag and a mask, and it's reported that he once ran a 2 minute mile after inadvertently sticking a syringe in his hand. myself, i regard the consistency of this man's action as suspect. i think suspicion is a very useful tool in dealing with the juice man, cuz i can protect my bet by keying his horse on top to legitimate contenders. wait, among, among the legitimate, etc.
can anybody guess this trainer's name?
i mean, this is horse-racing, fer gawd's sake, there's guys in this business who'll stick chili-peppers in a horse's butt for performance value! the very reputation of the sport attracts all manner of wizards and warlocks to its arena; and because we players are viewed as the scum of the earth, the law is more likely to turn a lethargic eye on shenanigans in our beloved venue than in other, more socially approved fields of peculation, i mean, speculation. in hong kong, there are very legitimate business firms involved in the wagering on racing there, and they insist on absolute honesty, and the government insures it, in response.
Pace Advantage thread (http://www.paceadvantage.com/forum/showthread.php?s=1d61a06aeade15b78510fd488242dc59&threadid=2104&pagenumber=3)
Racing's Tiger a fair way in front of the rest
By Max Presnell / Sydney Morning Herald June 17 2002
Critics are tipping that Hong Kong's new champion trainer, John "Tiger" Size, will have an air swing there next season.
They say his incredible first term in Honkers came because he rejuvenated tried horses, although many were cast-offs and unwanted. They say it will be different next time.
During the season he turned a dozen struggling nags into a bristling stable of 60, the maximum allowed, but Size must now develop his own horses: start them as yearlings and two-year-olds.
Before Size came along, this was the favoured situation for trainers, but some have mentioned it as a possible flaw in his swing. Of course, the down-to-earth Australian has done what most figured impossible by winning the Hong Kong premiership in his debut season.
But his achievements have even been put down in Sydney, where, if you listen to the whispered word, just about every successful trainer has "something" or "stuff" of the high-octane nature. Hong Kong has more drug testing than any other racing centre in the world. And Size is still coming up trumps.
New York Trainers Fined, Suspended for Positives by Mike Kane Date Posted: 9/10/02 12:23:46 PM Last Updated: 9/12/02 2:12:30 PM
Three trainers have been suspended and fined in New York for drug positives, two for lidocaine, a topical anesthetic that produced two positives in Kentucky earlier this year. Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott began a seven-day suspension Sept. 3, and was fined $1,000 for a lidocaine positive. The substance was was found in the post-race urine sample of Sweet Charity, who finished third in the sixth race at Aqueduct Jan. 4.
The horse was disqualified and unplaced in the order of finish. Mott withdrew his appeal and began serving his suspension at the conclusion of the Saratoga meet.
Trainer Gary Sciacca also began serving a seven-day suspension Sept. 3 and paid a $1,000 fine for a lidocaine positive for Hristoforous on Oct. 5, 2001. Hristoforos, who finished first in the seventh race that day at Belmont Park, was disqualified and unnplaced.
Trainer Edward Barker was suspended and fined $1,000 Sept. 3 for a post-race positive for the drug bupivacaine. Barker's horse, The Conquerer, tested positive following a third-place finish in the first race at Aqueduct Jan. 16.
Earlier this year, trainers Steve Penrod and Warren King were suspended for lidocaine positives in Kentucky.
Copyright © 2002 The Blood-Horse, Inc. All Rights Reserved
ACROSS THE BOARD by Steve Davidowitz
for TrackMaster - September 13 2002
I am suspicious of horses that suddenly jump out of their skins to show more speed or a stronger closing kick than they have demonstrated in six, seven or eighth consecutive starts. I may be wrong, but such drastic changes in running style and overall form has historically meant new chemicals in circulation. Beyond these suspicions, the Del Mar the racing surfaces themselves seemed to affect horse performance in undesirable ways.
this from the "beyer articles" thread in USA racing.
Hall of Fame trainer Bill Mott began a seven-day suspension Sept. 3, and was fined $1,000 for a lidocaine positive.
I can't understand why the fines are so incredibly light, when compared, for example, with the penalties handed out in Macau. Seems that the racing authorities in the US don't intend to take doping cases seriously.
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