FEI President Pushes 'Clean Sport' Message

Thehorse.com

By Edited Press Release
Sep 1, 2015

Fédération Equestre Internationale (FEI) President Ingmar De Vos has sent a strong message to the equestrian world on the importance of the FEI Clean Sport campaign in the countdown to the rollout of the FEI’s global Equine Anti-Doping and Controlled Medication Program (EADCMP) on Jan. 1, 2016.

The FEI headquarters currently coordinates administration of the EADCMP in FEI Regional Groups I and II (Europe), while administration of the program in the rest of the world has been undertaken through national anti-doping programs or national federations. In January the FEI headquarters will take over administration of the program worldwide.

In advance of the implementation of the worldwide EADCMP, the FEI will upscale its awareness and education campaign amongst national federations, athletes, and their entourages in order to prevent inadvertent positives.

“It is vital for the integrity of all sport that it is clean and fair, but it is even more important when there is an animal involved because of the welfare implications”, De Vos said. “The FEI has a stringent anti-doping policy in place to protect horse welfare and maintain a level playing field. Horse welfare and fair play have always been and always will be two of the central pillars of the FEI.

“We have close to 4,000 international events on the FEI calendar now and, as the international governing body, it is our responsibility to safeguard our athletes and the sport itself, and part of that is protecting our clean athletes,” he continued. “We have a rigorous testing policy and the FEI prohibited substances list contains over 1,000 substances, so it is crucial that our athletes and their vets are aware of what they are giving their horses.

“Of course our horses have to be treated if they are injured or sick, but anything given to the horse must have been eliminated from the body of the horse by the time of competition so that we can maintain the integrity of our sport. Boosting awareness and education is key. Keep it clean is the message.”

De Vos’ statement comes following news that the FEI has imposed provisional suspensions on two athletes whose horses have tested positive for prohibited substances.

Samples taken at a CEI1* 80km endurance event at Miramas, in France, on May 3 from the horse Buenaventura, ridden by Candice Pilloni (FRA), returned positive for the banned substance oxycodone (an opioid analgesic) and the controlled medication substance lidocaine and its metabolite 3-hydroxylidocaine (a local anaesthetic).

Further, samples taken at the North American Juniors and Young Riders Championships in Lexington, Kentucky, on July 16 and 18 from the horse Why Not, ridden by Sophie Simpson (USA) in jumping, returned positive for the banned substance capsaicin, a topical analgesic or irritant.

Both athletes have been provisionally suspended from the day of notification (Aug. 31). Additionally, the two horses have been provisionally suspended for two months. The athletes and the horse owners have the opportunity for a preliminary hearing before the FEI Tribunal to request the lifting of the provisional suspensions.