Sydney's leading trainer Chris Waller has avoided penalty but his four runners that tested positive to a prohibited substance were disqualified after a lengthy hearing at Racing NSW headquarters on Friday.
Racing NSW stewards revealed on Thursday that three members of Waller's stable had returned positive swabs to Ibuprofen, a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory.
The prohibited substance was detected in raceday samples taken from Arinosa when she won the Listed Wenona Girl Quality at Warwick Farm on March 16, Seuss when winning at Gosford on February 14 and Jade Marauder when unplaced at Rosehill on February 16 and Warwick Farm on March 16.
Waller ordered a specially made feed from product supplier Mitavite in December in an attempt to tackle the issue of his horses tying-up.
Mitavite in turn, engaged Agricure, a specialist feed supplier, to assist in the matter. Agricure's 50 percent shareholder, and quality assurance manager, Dr John Biffin, attended Friday's inquiry.
Dr Biffin advised stewards his company had been working on a mix that contained Ibuprofen for a Dr Daffy, a Victorian vet, who was trialling the product with the intention of getting it registered.
Dr Biffin said there was no chance that "Waller could've got Daffy's batch" otherwise "he'd have a caffeine positive".
Waller pleaded guilty to four charges issued under AR178 of having presented horses to race whereby a prohibited substance was detected in samples taken from them.
The trainer was not penalised after stewards were satisfied "Ibuprofen was introduced at the manufacturing stage".
"What we see is a very concerning issue and we'll be following it up," chief steward Ray Murrihy said.
Waller avoided a penalty, other than the runners being disqualified, but feed suppliers Mitavite and Agircure will still have to answer to the stewards' findings.
Chief steward Ray Murrihy said "it's not satisfactory" and that his team will be following the issue up to maintain the integrity of racing in NSW.
The following is an account of Friday's inquiry:
Waller was concerned in the latter months of 2012 with an ongoing enzyme (tying up) issue with a number of horses in his stable.
• On 16th November 2012, Waller spoke with a representative of his feed company (Mitavite), who advised that a company called Agricure Pty Ltd which, through their scientists and feed technicians, could assist with such problems by designing a new feed product.
• On December 4, 2012, Waller received an email from the feed company in which the formula of a proposed new feed product was set out.
• Following assurances in discussions between his (Waller's) foreman Peter Muscutt, and the sales manager of the feed company that the new formula contained no harmful or prohibited ingredients, Waller placed an order on the December 5, 2012 for a feed product delivery.
• Waller took delivery of the first batch of the new feed product and for the next six weeks fed the product morning and night to a select number of horses in one stable barn containing horses that had exhibited enzyme problems.
• In this period a number of horses from this barn raced, several were swabbed and all returned negative results.
• A second batch of feed was ordered and delivered on the January 29, 2013 and introduced into the feeding regime.
• On March 12, 2013, stewards inspected Waller's stables and veterinary records and interviewed the trainer and staff members when early advice was received from the ARFL of an irregularity to Ibuprofen, a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory in the blood sample from Jade Marauder on the February 16, 2013 at Rosehill.
• On March 19, 2013, stewards again attended Waller's stable when the urine sample taken from Seuss at Gosford on the February 14, 2013 also indicated an irregularity to Ibuprofen.
• As Seuss and Jade Marauder were both stabled in the barn of horses being fed with the new feed product, Waller immediately contacted Agricure Pty Ltd who volunteered that Ibuprofen was an ingredient of another customized product manufactured at the same mill.
• On March 19, 2013, three feed samples were taken for analysis from feed containers at Waller's stables by deputy chairman of stewards Marc Van Gestel and submitted to the ARFL for analysis.
• Horses from the barn being fed the new product were withdrawn from their racing commitments.
• On March 20, 2013, chairman of stewards Ray Murrihy and senior official veterinarian Dr Craig Suann attended Waller's stables and took samples from seven horses and confiscated four containers of the feed product from which a further four feed samples were submitted to the ARFL for analysis.
• On March 23, 2013, Ray Murrihy and Dr Craig Suann took a further 11 feed samples from containers of the manufactured feed held at Waller's stable, nine of the containers were unopened and sealed.
• The ARFL subsequently reported the presence of Ibuprofen in six of the seven samples taken from the horses at Waller's stables which were being fed the new feed product.
• The ARFL reported the presence of Ibuprofen at high levels in all samples taken from the eight pails of the second batch of feed product ordered on the January 19, 2013.
• The ARFL reported trace levels of Ibuprofen in the samples taken from the three remaining pails the first batch of the feed product ordered on the December 6, 2013.
• On March 23, 2013, a further sample was taken from Charleston Lady which was returned as negative by the ARFL on the March 27, 2013. Stewards subsequently cleared the horses from the barn to resume racing.
• On April 23, 201,3 the stewards received a confirmatory certificate certifying the presence of Ibuprofen in the urine sample taken from Arinosa at Warwick Farm on March 16, 2013. A confirmatory certificate had earlier been received on the April 9, 2013 certifying the presence of Ibuprofen in the pre-race blood sample taken on the same day from Arinosa.
• On April 24, 2013 stewards received a confirmatory certificate of analysis certifying the presence of Ibuprofen in the pre-race urine sample taken from Jade Marauder at Warwick Farm on the March 16, 2013 and an inquiry date of the April 26, 2013 was confirmed.
In reaching a decision to record four breaches of AR178 against Waller but not to issue a penalty, the stewards gave consideration to the following:
The stewards were fully satisfied that the finding of Ibuprofen in samples from the racehorses Seuss, Jade Marauder and Arinosa was due to contamination with Ibuprofen of a feed product supplied to the Waller stable at the manufacturing mill
The stewards were satisfied that Waller had made all reasonable and necessary inquires of his feed supplier and had personally approved of the formula of ingredients to be included before introducing the new feed product to horses in his stable.
The stewards accepted that Waller could not reasonably have anticipated, given the reputation of his feed supplier in the thoroughbred racing industry, that the feed product supplied to his stable may be contaminated with a prohibited substance.
The approach of the stewards making a finding against the trainer but then not issuing a penalty was consistent with the recent approach taken by stewards across Australia in positive findings arising out of established contamination issues involving ractopamine, morphine, (wild opium poppies) and synephrine.
The approach of the stewards is consistent with the finding of Racing NSW Appeal Panel in upholding the appeal against penalty of licensed trainer Gai Waterhouse in the Love You Honey positive swab case from April 25, 2005 at the Gosford Race Club Meeting.
Stewards indicated they will follow up with relevant government authorities the concerning issue of a feed product contaminated with a schedule four substance, being supplied to a trainer.