Doping blame game kicks off

AS the Olympic Committee of Ireland launches an investigation into the management of Irish Olympic equestrianism, Horse Sport Ireland has laid the blame for Thursday’s failed horse doping incident solely on the rider’s shoulders.

Today’s B-sample testing is expected to confirm conclusively that Denis Lynch’s mount Lantinus had a quantity of the banned substance capsaicin in its system.

The rider will face an International Equestrian Federation (FEI) tribunal in the next seven to 10 days and it will decide whether he will be given a ban from the sport.

Yesterday, the president of the Olympic Committee of Ireland (OCI), Pat Hickey, said he was shocked and appalled at the horse-doping controversy, describing it as a serious embarrassment for Ireland.

“We are appalled that we could be landed in this situation. I can’t comment any further because there will be a B-sample and there will be a process, so due process has to happen.

“I can tell you that the OCI are going to conduct their own investigation into the management of the Irish equestrian team here because there was a lack of reporting on their part to us on events and I had to go the highest level of the International Olympic Committee to find out what was going on, and that is not good enough.”

He said the scandal, the second Ireland has faced in successive Olympics, put the future of show jumping in the Olympics into question.

“This poses very serious problems for equestrian sport and also for the horse industry in Ireland because there is a vote next year on which sports will remain on the Olympic programme and which will go out. There seems to be too many situations like this so I think from what I hear from my colleagues that this sport could be in very serious difficulties for next year’s vote.”

Horse Sport Ireland chief executive, Damian McDonald, defended the way the Irish Olympic Committee was informed of the situation before launching a stout defence of his organisation and its officials — and laying the blame on rider Denis Lynch.

“Obviously for us the one area we would make clear to the riders that they need to consult with the Irish team vet in advance of using any product whatsoever. He did not do that. Everyone has accepted he did not do that. That clearly is something we have to look at. He did bring the product, he has been using it all the time, it was in his tack box. It is not a veterinary product as such. We did not search tack boxes or anything like that. Maybe, that is something more we need to do.

“We are a new governing body set up on January 1. One of our key goals was stopping any controversy like this happening in equestrianism again. There is no question in terms of Robert Splaine our team manager or Marcus Swail our team vet. I would regard them as people of the highest integrity who did everything they could to prevent a situation like this happening. Clearly we have to do more.”

When it was put to him that he appeared to be placing the blame with the rider he said: “This is not the time to be apportioning blame and trying to isolate anybody but everybody knows that the rules are very clear in all sports that the person responsible is always the athlete. I feel we do submit to elective testing and make it so clear to the riders. It is hard to know how much more you can do.”