Newsletter from N.H.A.

Dear African Betting Clan Syndicate ,

Welcome, welcome to this - issue 3 of your very own update on the goings on at the National Horseracing Authority. We hope that you had a good break, a well deserved rest and spent some quality time watching some good racing over the Festive season?

For the NHA, business carries on into January - as you will see, our Appeals and Inquiry Boards have been as busy as ever, our laboratory is working tirelessly to uphold the integrity of horseracing, AND there's a new Rankings list for thoroughbreds... which includes a few of our home-grown stars.

It's a jam-packed edition, and we sincerely hope that you enjoy the read.



Best Regards,
COLIN HALL

studbook

2008 Thoroughbred World Rankings



scales of justice

We keep the racing world on its toes! Have a look at the infringements we've picked up...


laboratory
Testing for Prohibited Substances in racehorses


racing
Graded races 2009


contact us
For more information.....






2008 Thoroughbred World Rankings


The International Federation of Horseracing Authorities recently released the 2008 World Thoroughbred Rankings.

For the first time the Rankings include all world performances in the 2008 calendar year irrespective of where individual horses raced or were trained, whereas previously two separate listings were published. The first, in January, listed performances from January to December of horses which raced and were trained in the Northern Hemisphere and a second listing, published in August, reflecting performances from August to July of Southern Hemisphere raced and trained horses.

This new World Thoroughbred Rankings provides a comprehensive list of the best individual performances by the world's racing elite during


the 2008 calendar year. The rankings comprise all horses rated 115 and above by the World Thoroughbred Rankings Committee.

The two highest rated horses at 130 were CURLIN (USA) and NEW APPROACH (IRE) whilst the top filly with a rating of 129 was ZARKAVA (IRE).

Fourteen horses which were either bred in South Africa or raced for South African trainers are included in these rankings. The highest of these is EAGLE MOUNTAIN (GB) trained by Mike de Kock with a rating of 122. POCKET POWER (SAF) trained by Mike Bass was rated 121.

ARCHIPENKO (USA), HONOUR DEVIL (ARG) and SUN CLASSIQUE (AUS) trained by Mike de Kock, JAY PEG (SAF) trained by Herman Brown and JJ THE JET PLANE (SAF) trained by Lucky Houdalakis were all rated 120.

To view the full details of all horses included in the rankings, go to the IFHA's website here >>





Keeping the name of Horseracing clean is what the National Horseracing Authority believes in. And an important part of that is keeping our members informed about the ins and outs...

On 23 January 2009, Jockey Andrew Fortune lodged an appeal against the severity of his penalty (a two-week suspension), imposed by an Inquiry Board for conducting himself in an improper manner after the running of Race 3; Greyville Racecourse; 28 September 2008. The appeal was upheld.
The Appeal Board was of the view that there were circumstances which needed to be borne in mind: It is common cause that Mr Fortune did not initiate the incident as Mr Sturgeon appeared to be the jockey who struck the first blow in the altercation.
The Appeal Board accordingly decided to substitute the penalty imposed by the Inquiry Board with a fine to the tune of
R20 000, as well as a two-week suspension, suspended for a period of one year.






Jockey Andrew Fortune was again in the news when an appeal was held on 23 January 2009. Fortune lodged an Appeal against the decision of the Licensing Board of the NHA for refusing his application to ride at less than 57kgs, which would enable him to accept the ride on VISION OF GRANDEUR in the J & B Met. The appeal was dismissed.
The Appeal Board was mindful of the fact that for a period of more than a year Mr Fortune has struggled to ride at 57kgs and has on a number of occasions been fined or replaced as a jockey on horses he was carded to ride at 57kgs.
The Appeal Board was also mindful of the fact that by Mr Fortune's own admission, he has a cavalier attitude to his weight and has not been unduly concerned to ensure that he is able to ride at his minimum permitted weight of 57kgs.

At an Inquiry held in Port Elizabeth on 16 January 2009, Apprentice Jockey Aldo Domeyer was charged with a contravention of Rule 77, read with Rules 77.1.1 and 77.2.10, in that a urine specimen taken from him at Arlington Racecourse on 29 September 2008 disclosed the presence of Furosemide which is a prohibited substance in terms of the Rules of The National Horseracing Authority. Mr Domeyer pleaded guilty to and was found guilty of the charge. The Inquiry Board imposed a suspension from riding at race meetings for a period of one month of which two weeks is suspended for a period of one year on condition that he is not found guilty of a similar offence during that period.

Apprentice Jockey Devin Ashby was charged with a contravention of Rule 62.2.7 in that, whilst riding ADMIRAL CAMDEN he failed to ensure that he did not cause interference to WHITE SOCKS at approximately the 350m mark in Race 3 at the Kenilworth Racecourse; 17 January 2009. Mr Ashby signed an Admission of Guilt and has been suspended from riding in race meetings for a period of one week from 21 January to 27 January 2009, both days inclusive.

At an inquiry held in Cape Town on 12 January 2009,Jockey Karl Neisius was charged with a contravention of Rule 62.2.7 in that, whilst riding ARCTIC CIRCLE in Race 3 at the Kenilworth Racecourse; 23 December 2008, he failed to ensure that he did not cause interference to a runner on his inside when he shifted in at about the 1250m mark. Mr Neisius pleaded not guilty. The Inquiry Board found Mr Neisius guilty and suspended him from riding in race meetings for a period of one week.

An inquiry was held in Cape Town on 12 January 2009. Jockey Karl Neisius was charged with a contravention of Rule 62.2.7 in that, whilst riding MR STUDIOUS in Race 4 at the Kenilworth Racecourse; 3 January 2009, he failed to ensure that he did not cause interference to other runners on his inside when he shifted in at about the 100m mark. Mr Neisius pleaded not guilty. The Inquiry Board found Mr Neisius guilty and he was suspended from riding in race meetings for a period of one week.

On Tuesday 18 November 2008, an Appeal Board heard an appeal by Trainer GS Kotzen against the finding and penalty imposed by an Inquiry Board on 18 June 2008, after Trainer Glen Kotzen was found guilty of a contravention of rule 73.2.4, in that he was the trainer responsible for the horse HARVEST DAY, at the time when a specimen taken from that horse, after it participated in race 3 at Durbanville Racecourse; 29 January 2008, disclosed, upon analysis, the presence of hydrocortisone, which is a prohibited substance.
Trainer Glen Kotzen had properly exercised his right in terms of rule 75.5.2.1 to require that a confirmatory analysis be conducted. In the process of that confirmatory analysis, however, the reference sample was compromised in that when the sealed package was opened by the overseas laboratory it was evident that there had been some seepage from the sealed specimen bottle. It was the view of the Appeal Board that, notwithstanding the positive finding following the analysis conducted by the local laboratory, the integrity of the reference sample could, in the circumstances not be relied upon. Hence, it was the view of the Appeal Board that it would be inequitable to pursue Inquiry proceedings (and any possible subsequent conviction) in the absence of an uncompromised reference sample. The appeal was allowed.

Apprentice Jockey Donald Bogaleboile was charged with a contravention of Rule 58.10.2 in that whilst riding LE GRAND NATION in Race 8 at the Fairview Racecourse; 19 December 2008 and whilst riding BROKE BACK DANCER in Race 3 at the Fairview Racecourse; 21 December 2008, he used his crop in an excessive manner on both horses. Mr Bogaleboile signed an Admission of Guilt and was suspended from riding in race meetings for a period of two weeks from 10 January to 23 January 2009, both days inclusive.

Jockey Greg Cheyne was charged with a contravention of Rule 62.2.7 in that, whilst riding ACHILLES he failed to ensure that he did not cause interference to FRINGE BENEFIT at approximately the 100m mark in Race 5 at the Fairview Racecourse; 9 January 2009. Mr Cheyne signed an Admission of Guilt and was suspended from riding in race meetings for a period of one week from 14 January to 20 January 2009, both days inclusive.

Jockey Muzi Yeni was charged with a contravention of Rule 62.2.7 in that, whilst riding SEÑOR SADLER he failed to ensure that he did not cause interference to other runners at approximately the 1000m mark in Race 7 at the Flamingo Park Racecourse; 15 December 2008. Mr Yeni signed an Admission of Guilt and was suspended from riding in race meetings for a period of one week from 15 January to 21 January 2009, both days inclusive.

Jockey Andrew Fortune was charged with a contravention of Rule 62.2.7 in that, whilst riding RED RAKE he failed to ensure that he did not cause interference to other runners when he shifted in at the 400m mark in Race 7 at the Kenilworth Racecourse; 16 December 2008. Mr Fortune signed an Admission of Guilt and was suspended from riding in race meetings for a period of one week from 18 January to 25 January 2009, both days inclusive but excluding 24 January 2009

At an inquiry held in Johannesburg on 9 January 2009, Jockey Chad Little was charged with a contravention of Rule 62.2.2 in that he rode WHAT'S THE ODDS in an incompetent manner in Race 2 at the Turffontein Racecourse; 16 December 2008 for deviating from his standard of riding expertise by failing to improve his position into a gap which was available between approximately the 500 and 350 metre marks. This resulted in him becoming baulked for a clear run from the 300 metre mark to the 100 metre mark, where he had to switch out for a clear run.
Mr Little pleaded not guilty. However, the Inquiry Board found him guilty of the charge and imposed a suspension from riding in races for a period of one month, of which two weeks is wholly suspended for a period of one year.

At an Inquiry held in Cape Town on 7 January 2009, Jockey Andrew Fortune was charged with a contravention of Rule 62.2.7 in that when riding NOAH in Race 4 at the Kenilworth Racecourse; 23 December 2008, he failed to ensure that he did not cause interference when he shifted in at about the 200m and made contact with ECCENTRIC DANCER, which was racing on his inside. Mr Fortune pleaded not guilty. The Inquiry Board found Mr Fortune guilty and imposed a suspension from riding in race meetings for a period of one week.

Jockey Gavin Lerena was charged with a contravention of Rule 62.2.7 in that, whilst riding BLUE NEVADA he failed to ensure that he did not cause interference to other runners at approximately the 250m mark in Race 5 at the Turffontein Racecourse; 4 January 2009. Mr Lerena signed an Admission of Guilt and was suspended from riding in race meetings for a period of one week from 9 January to 15 January 2009, both days inclusive.




Testing For Prohibited Substances in racehorses


The National Horseracing Authority of Southern Africa (NHA) routinely takes specimens from racehorses to test for prohibited substances.

Normal policy is to take a specimen from at least one horse in each race, as well as to do out of competition testing. As a result, roughly 5 000 specimens are analysed by The Authority's world class laboratory each year.

The NHA continues to be vigilant to ensure that erythropoietin and/or growth hormones are not being misused in racing. Erythropoietin, or EPO as it is called, is a substance which, when administered to a human athlete, increases the production of red blood cells and thus enables the blood to carry more oxygen. It does, however, have serious side effects which have led to the death of some of the athletes who have used it.




If commercially available EPO is administered to a horse, repeated high doses would be required to significantly increase the quantity of red blood cells. There is, however, no evidence that EPO actually increases the performance of a horse. But, the exposure to commercial EPO can, as in the case of humans, be harmful and even life-threatening to the horses. Commercial growth hormone treatment of the horse has been shown to result in a general increase in muscle mass. Interestingly, to date, no studies have demonstrated that such treatment leads to the enhancement of the athletic ability of such horses.

The National Horseracing Authority's laboratory has been at the forefront of international efforts to identify the misuse of growth hormone and to develop analytical techniques which enable it to confirm such misuse. Details of its research and of the techniques developed have been presented at international racing conferences and have been published in leading international scientific journals.

In addition to its routine testing programme, The National Horseracing Authority has again this year embarked on an extensive, additional and narrowly focused set of tests for erythropoietin and growth hormone. Blood samples taken from approximately 180 of the top rated horses from throughout South Africa were tested during November 2009. The Laboratory found no evidence of the use of either substance.

Whilst these tests would clearly suggest that neither EPO nor growth hormone are being used in horses being raced in South Africa, The National Horseracing Authority will continue to test for these substances on a routine basis.




Graded races 2009


The Graded Races Committee did not recommend any changes to the list of Grade 1 races for 2009.

When it met on 29 August 2008, the Committee felt that the 32 races that made up the list of Grade 1 races should remain unchanged.

It did, however, recommend that the Peninsula Handicap, run over 1800m at Kenilworth, be promoted from Grade 3 to Grade 2.

The Peninsula Handicap has attracted a strong field over the past few years and forms part of the preparation for the J & B Met. Horses aiming for the Met can now run in the Premiers Trophy (Grade 2) and the Peninsula Handicap (Grade 2) in order to get ready for the Met.

Also in the Western Cape, the Chairman's Cup was promoted from a Listed Race to a Grade 3 race. This race has established itself as an integral part of the stayers programme during the Cape season. Notwithstanding the lack of staying horses, this race has consistently attracted a strong field.





The improvements to the Western Cape juvenile programme were embraced by the Committee and two new races were given Listed status. The Betting World Juvenile Fillies over 1200m, which takes place in April and the Juvenile Fillies 1500m, which takes place in June both now have Listed status. The Committee felt that the amendments to the Western Cape Juvenile programme were very constructive.

Staying in the Western Cape, improvements were also made to the opportunities for 3 year-old fillies. Two new races, the Winter Fillies 1400 and the Winter Fillies 1600 were introduced in order that the balance of opportunities for the 3-year old fillies. These two races will lead up to the Winter Oaks (listed). The races both received listed status.

Other races which were considered good enough to justify black type were the Politician Stakes, Jamaica Stakes, Laisserfaire Handicap, Southeaster Sprint and the August Stakes. They all received Listed Status.

There are now 32 Grade 1 races, 39 Grade 2 races, 46 Grade 3 races and 78 Listed Races.

The Graded Races Committee is a Sub-Committee of The National Horseracing Authority's National Board. The National Board ratified the recommendations made by the Committee. The complete list of Black Type races is now on the NHA website. To view, click here >> and go to Graded Races.





For more information, or to forward news stories for inclusion into the Flying Colours newsletter, contact Racing Administration Manager Colin Hall via email or call


011 683 9283

AB told you its easy for trainers to get off a positive test fine.