Greyhound trainer had doping fine in Britain

ONE of the greyhound trainers Paschal Taggart claims was lacking in “awareness” when he administered prohibited drug EPO was fined by British racing authorities 14 months ago for using banned substances.

Leading trainer Paul Hennessy was fined £800 (€1,167) in December 2004 and severely reprimanded by the National Greyhound Racing Club stewards in London, following a positive drugs test on his young greyhound Heart Rumble.

The NGRC inquiry heard the greyhound had the anabolic steroid nandrolone, banned across a range of professional sports, in his system along with two other metabolites, drugs often used by weightlifters.

Mr Hennessy has one of the best records in the Irish greyhound industry with 1,775 winners out of 7,129 race entries a win-rate of 25%.

Bord na gCon chairman Paschal Taggart provoked a huge political controversy, after he authorised the suppression of positive drug findings against Mr Hennessy and a second trainer, John Kiely. When the board's chief executive Aidan Tynan objected he was sacked.

Mr Taggart said it would have been too damaging for the industry if trainers of Mr Hennessy's stature were exposed, especially as there was a lack of awareness about EPO.

However, Mr Hennessy already had a published fine on his record for using banned substances, which would have been known to Bord na gCon.

Mr Hennessy said his dog had been injected with laurabolin in a treatment for renal failure on November 15, 2004.

The chairman of the Public Accounts Committee Michael Noonan said yesterday the inquiry into Bord na gCon should establish why the Control Committee, which investigates the doping of racing greyhounds, went out of existence for four months.