Quote of the Month For EPO Cheats
EPO, No, No, No – Gotcha! – Part 1 – Aussie Scientists Work Out a Simple Way to Swab For EPO – Be Afraid Cheats, Be Very, Very Afraid
A quintet of Aussie scientists including Dr Adam Cawley from the Australian Racing Forensic Laboratory have cracked the Da Vinci Code. They’ve found a fast, cheap and accurate way to test swabs for EPO. Their test detects follistatin (FST), growth hormone 1 (GH1), insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF1), and interleukin-1 receptor antagonist (IL1RN) too, which pretty […]
EPO, No No No – Gotcha! – Part 3 – You’re Sprung Slimeballs
The term ‘gene doping’ is used to describe the use of any unauthorized gene therapy techniques. We developed a test for five likely candidate genes for equine gene doping: EPO, FST, GH1, IGF1, and ILRN1. The test is based on real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and includes separate screening and confirmation assays that detect different unique targets in each transgene. For […]
EPO, No No No – Gotcha! – Part 3 – A Bit About the Science
The Australian horseracing industry is the second largest Thoroughbred racing and breeding industry internationally, contributing over $9.1 billion Australian dollars (AUD) value to the national economy [1]. At least one third of the contribution to this figure comes from wagering. For consumers to invest in wagering with confidence, it is essential to maintain a fair gambling […]
Alexandra Park Called Off – Updated
We will have to wait a bit longer for the return of the superstar Merlin, after tonight’s meeting at Alexandra Park has been postponed due to weather and the state of the track. The mail is that the rain has created some ruts on the turns that has rendered the track unsafe to race on. […]
Tips and Rumors
What does Toowoomba trainer Kylie Geran’s FB post about Kobie O’Brien mean? Isn’t he only temporarily absent from everyone’s favorite racehorse syndicator while he deals with an emergent personal issue? Doesn’t read like it does it? Which 64-year-old trot trainer from Toolern Vale is said to be under investigation by HRV for sexual harassment of […]
Strange Bedfellows
Turn around bright eyes ….. No wonder Harness Racing SA CEO Dean Elliott can’t find the time to order his Chief Stewards to charge trainer Shane Loone over the ring-in he pulled at Globe Derby. It seems that Elliott is too busy posing for photos with alleged cocaine trafficking kingpins to attend to the integrity […]
Major Shake Up of HRNZ Board Sees Chairman, Deputy and 5 Directors Gone
The board of Harness Racing New Zealand is set for a major shakeup, with the Chairman, his deputy and five of the other 8 current directors of the principal body moving on or being moved on at next month’s AGM. Phil Holden, Cam Bray, Todd Anderson, John Coulam, Bill McDonald, John Grainger and Anna Gallien […]
Braith Nock Needs to Wake Up to Himself Before It’s Too Late
Keep your eyes on apprentice Braith Nock in the lime and red silks and red cap, second from the outside, in this race at Hawkesbury last Saturday week. Watch what he does to the rider and horse on his outside, first with his knee and then with his elbow. Nock pleaded guilty to a charge […]
Stakes Race Explosion Compounds NZ’s Pattern Trainwreck
With 26 new stakes races this season, HRNZ’s unregulated calendar is now completely out of kilter with international standards Harness racing’s already bloated stakes calendar has now become completely disproportionate. Between those already announced, and those set to be next week by Harness Racing New Zealand, 26 new Group and Listed races are being added […]