Sole Irish gold in jeopardy after horse fails dope test

Published on Saturday 9 October 2004 00:27

IRISH sport suffered another huge blow to its pride last night when it emerged that Waterford Crystal, the horse Cian O’Connor rode to win Ireland’s only gold medal at the Athens Olympics, failed a dope test during the Games.

The Equestrian Federation of Ireland (EFI) said yesterday it had been informed by horse riding’s international governing body that a sample taken from Waterford Crystal had "proved positive for prohibited substances" after the individual show jumping competition.

O’Connor, who will request that the B sample taken in Athens also be tested, said he took responsibility for medication administered to his horse before the Games, but that he believed it had not been given performance-enhancing drugs.

"I believe that I won this medal fair and square and that the horse has not been given anything that would make him jump better," he said.

"I am utterly devastated that the A sample taken from my horse at the Games has tested positive. That notion amounts to cheating, and I am not a cheat. I plan to have the B sample tested as soon as possible and to proceed from there with the EFI."

If Waterford Crystal’s second sample is positive, O’Connor could be stripped of his gold medal, Ireland’s first-ever in an equestrian event at the Olympics. It would be a crushing blow for sport and morale in Ireland, with O’Connor’s success having eased the pain of the Michelle Smith scandal. The Irish swimmer won three gold medals at the 1996 Olympics, but later was found guilty of tampering with a urine sample during a drugs test and banned for four years.

The Irish federation said O’Connor had informed them of treatment for a mild fetlock injury given to Waterford Crystal on 22 July. The vet had prescribed mild sedation to prevent the horse injuring himself further during hydrotherapy treatment. "I can categorically state that the medication administered by me was not a performance-enhancing substance, but was used after careful consideration, in the best interests of the horse’s welfare," veterinary surgeon James Sheeran told the EFI.

He also said that he could not understand how the medication could still have been present in the horse’s system by the time samples were taken at the Games over a month later.

EFI president Avril Doyle said she did not condone the use of prohibited substances in competition under any circumstances. However, she added: "The Federation stands behind Cian O’Connor in his bid to clarify the situation, and respects his right of due process."

If the B-sample is positive, the person responsible must explain the horse’s positive test within 10 days. Subsequently, FEI will compile a case file to be submitted to the federation’s judicial committee for its decision. The person responsible then has 30 days to appeal any FEI decision to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

In a separate statement yesterday the International Federation for Equestrian Sport (FEI) said four out of 40 horses tested for drugs at the Athens Games had returned positive samples. FEI would not release or confirm the names of the horses whose A samples were positive.