On 1 September 2020, the Victorian Racing Tribunal (VRT) considered a charge issued by Harness Racing Victoria (HRV) Stewards against licensed trainer-driver Ross Graham under Australian Harness Racing Rule (AHRR) 190(1).
AHRR 190(1) reads as follows:
A horse shall be presented for a race free of prohibited substances.
The charge related to a blood sample collected from the horse ‘Animated’ prior to it competing in Race 5, the ‘Keilor East Probus Group Pace’, at the Tabcorp Park Melton harness racing meeting on 9 November 2019. Racing Analytical Services Limited (RASL) reported the sample contained cobalt in excess of the allowable threshold.
Mr Graham pleaded guilty to the charge before submissions on penalty were heard from the HRV Stewards and Peter Randles, counsel for Mr Graham.
Penalty
Charge 1 - AHRR 190(1) – 12-month suspension of all licenses.
The suspension was ordered to commence immediately.
The VRT also ordered that, under AHRR 195, ‘Animated’ be disqualified from Race 5 at Tabcorp Park Melton on 9 November 2019 and that the placings be amended accordingly.
VRT Panel: Judge John Bowman (Chairman) and Dr Andrew Gould.
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)