An interesting article about new anti-doping authority in the US that takes care of the protection of American racehorses.
Nieuwe anti-doping autoriteit in VS moet Amerikaanse renpaarden beter beschermen
Here you can find the translation of the article:
“Recently, there have been frequent reports of deceased horses on racetracks in the United States. The Santa Anita racetrack in California became particularly infamous. The country’s new budget law now includes an anti-doping authority for racing, which aims to bring US rules more into line with the situation in the rest of the world.
In 2019, no fewer than 23 horses died on Santa Anita in a period of three months. Recently, accidents have also occurred regularly on other racetracks in the US, both in training and competitions. Studies of the relatively high number of deaths point to the use of certain medications in the horses on the race days. This medication is said to hide existing injuries and is behind a number of dramatic accidents.
Horse Racing Integrity and Safety Act
Thanks to the new Horse racing Integrity and Safety Act, there is now a national approach to doping. Until now, there was no common policy and there were 38 different authorities, each with different rules on doping. The use of anti-inflammatories and painkillers in racehorses was much more common in the US than in other countries. Now there will be one anti-doping authority, one national policy and national procedures and fines for violations. The safety of the race tracks is also better guaranteed. A new accreditation program for racetracks should, among other things, ensure that maintenance is carried out according to the correct standards.
Trump must sign
The law is backed by animal rights organizations as well as a number of important racing institutions such as the owners of all three Triple Crown courses, the Jockey Club and Breeders’ Cup Ltd. President Donald Trump has yet to sign the law.”
Source: Horse & Hound / horses.nl
