Endurance riders banned by FEI for doping

Two endurance riders have been banned from the sport by the FEI after their horses tested positive for banned substances.

Not allowed in competiton

Nasser Khalifa NJ Al Thani’s horse Brookleigh Caspar tested positive at the 120km one-star endurance competition at Mesaieed in Doha on 11 April 2014.

The banned substance heptaminol was found in his system, along with the controlled medications phenylbutazone, meloxicam and dexamethasone.

Heptaminol is a stimulant that dilates blood vessels. Phenylbutazone (bute) and meloxicam are non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) used for pain relief, while dexamethasone is a corticosteroid with anti-inflammatory effect.

Controlled medications are substances regularly used to treat horses, but which are not allowed in competition.

Right to appeal

As well as a 27-month suspension, Al Thani has been fined CHF 5,000 (£3,500) and will contribute CHF 2,000 (£1,300) towards judicial costs.

South African rider Gillese De Villiers, has also been banned for six months and fined CHF 500 (£340). Her horse Tra Flama tested positive for the bute at the World Equestrian Games.

Both riders have 30 days from the date of notification to appeal this decision to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).

‘No fault or negligence’

Sheikh Hazza Bin Sultan Bin Zayed Al Nahyan has had his appeal against his 27-month ban rejected by the CAS.

Sheikh Hazza won the CEI3* in Al Wathba (UAE) on 11 February 2012 riding Glenmorgan. However, the horse later tested positive for propoxyphene, which is an opiate analgesic.

The FEI imposed a longer ban because of a previous doping case in 2005.

The CAS upheld the FEI’s argument that the person responsible (PR) should be banned unless they can show the substance got into the horse’s system through ‘no fault or negligence of the athlete’.

However, it has reduced his ban to 18 months, stating the athlete’s fault was “not significant”.