On 14 February 2024, the Victorian Racing Tribunal (VRT) considered two (2) charges issued by Harness Racing Victoria (HRV) Stewards against licensed trainer Paul Watson under Australian Harness Racing Rules (AHRR) 190(1) and 190A(4).
Charge 1 was issued under AHRR 190(1), which states:
A horse shall be presented for a race free of prohibited substances.
This charge related to a urine sample collected from the horse ‘Emily Vincent’ after it won Race 1, the ‘Red House Bakery 2YO Pace’, at the Maryborough harness racing meeting on 15 December 2022. Racing Analytical Services Limited (RASL) reported the sample contained cobalt in excess of the allowable threshold.
Charge 2 was issued under AHRR 190A(4), which states:
Any person who is in possession of a substance specified in sub-rule (2) or a metabolite, artifact or isomer of such substance is guilty of an offence.
AHRR 190A(2) reads as follows:
For the purposes of sub-rule (1), the following substances are specified as prohibited substances:-
… (r) anabolic androgenic steroids (other than an anabolic androgenic steroid which is present at or below the relevant concentrations set out in Rule 188A(2)).
This charge related to a bottle of liquid labelled ‘Stanazol’ being located by Investigative Stewards at the registered stables of Mr Watson during a stable inspection on 27 January 2023.
Subsequent analysis by RASL confirmed that the liquid in the bottle contained stanozolol, which is an anabolic androgenic steroid.
Mr Watson pleaded guilty to Charge 1 and not guilty to Charge 2.
After hearing on behalf of the HRV Stewards and Luke Dunne, who represented Mr Watson, the VRT found Mr Watson guilty of Charge 2.
Submissions on penalty were subsequently heard on behalf of the HRV Stewards and Mr Dunne, on behalf of Mr Watson.
Penalty
Charge 1: AHRR 190(1) – 12-month suspension, 6 months of which suspended for 12 months.
Charge 2: AHRR 190A(4) – $1000 fine, $500 of which suspended for 12 months.
The VRT also ordered that, under AHRR 195, ‘Emily Vincent’ be disqualified from Race 1 at Maryborough on 15 December 2022 and that the placings be amended accordingly. Further to that, the VRT ordered that under AHRR 200(1) any prizemoney won by ‘Emily Vincent’ from the race be refunded to HRV.
VRT Panel: Judge John Bowman (Chairperson) and Melissa Mahady.
The written decisions of the VRT can be found here.
(Please note that VRT Decisions will generally be published within 7-10 days of the date of hearing)