Malaysia's top horse trainer alleges rampant doping by gang

Malaysia's top horse trainer alleges rampant doping by gang

KUALA LUMPUR (Agencies): Malaysian horse racing was hit by
allegations of doping by an organized gang on Thursday after four
horses failed blood tests and were barred from competing in the
northern state of Penang.

One of the top trainers in the country, K. Velayuthan, claimed
that he and other trainers were victims of an organized group
doping horses to fix race results. Velayuthan lodged a police
report Sunday after a blood test confirmed that his four horses
were doped.

A police spokesman, speaking to The Associated Press on
condition of anonymity, confirmed that several stable workers
have been questioned in connection with the allegations, but no
one has been arrested.

Velayuthan said he was offering 10,000 ringgit (US$2,631) for
information to nab the culprits.

"There have been many cases like this," Velayuthan told The
Associated Press, accusing several circuits of having lax
security.

Velayuthan said it was still unclear what substance was used
to dope his horses and that full test results remained unknown.
Penang Turf Club officials were not immediately available for
comment.

"This doping is normally done by people who have access to the
animals," Velayuthan said. "I am waiting for police to advise on
what precautionary measures can be taken."

Malaysia's bustling horse racing circuit rakes in millions of
ringgit annually. Two jockeys were arrested in Penang two years
ago in connection with illegal betting activities.

Off-track betting is illegal. On Christmas Eve, police picked
up 10 men, including a Singaporean and two Australians, and
seized betting slips and cellular phones from their hotel rooms.
They were released on bail pending further investigation.

Meanwhile, a turf club in the northern state of Perak has been
sued for defamation over the mix up of urine test involving two
horses, The Sun newspaper reported Thursday.

Azni Mohamad Azar claimed that his horse, Prince Igy, which
was taking part in an equestrian competition, was wrongly
identified as having tested positive for two banned substances in
1998.

The Perak Turf Club, in filing its defense, acknowledged that
the urine test results were those of another horse but said the
record had been straightened out.

A judge will hear the case Feb. 16.

Alcohol test

In Hong Kong, a German champion jockey has been banned from
competing for a month on Thursday after failing an alcohol
breathalyser test.

Andrasch Starke was the first jockey to fail a test since
breath testing was introduced in Hong Kong in September 1997.

Starke was hauled before a Jockey Club inquiry after he failed
the test when he was one of four jockeys randomly selected at a
race meeting at the Sha Tin course in the New Territories on
Dec. 26.

He took a total of five tests on two breath testing machines
and was found to have above the permitted legal allowance of 22
micrograms of ethanol per 100 milliliters of breath on each
occasion.

He also failed a blood sample test conducted by a government
laboratory.

Starke, who won the International Jockey Series at the Happy
Valley race course on Hong Kong island on his debut appearance on
Dec. 13, pleaded guilty before the inquiry and submitted an
apology for causing embarrassment to the club and the sport.

The South China Morning Post reported last week that the 26-
year-old was understood to have been celebrating on Christmas Day
with his girlfriend, Anja, who had arrived from Germany just
before Christmas.

"I had some wine on Christmas night, just a little to
celebrate. There was a lot of time between then and the racing
and I never thought there would be a problem," he said quoted by
the Post.

In a statement, John Schreck, chief stipendiary steward, said:
"It was obvious to all members of the panel that Jockey Starke
was clearly regretful of what had occurred."

He added that after careful consideration, it had been decided
to suspend Starke's license to ride in races until Feb. 5, but
the ban would not go into effect until after Saturday's race
meeting.