Blinkers On is a weekly column covering the biggest issues of the spring racing carnival.
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Blinkers → cover → carnival
It is the last thing racing needed on the eve of Melbourne Cup week – another group of unsuspecting victims caught up in racing’s breast cancer drug saga.
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racing → need → saga
This time around, up to 50 owners have had their Cup week dreams ruined because their horse Major Share has produced a left-field positive to formestane – a mysterious substance that popped out of nowhere almost four years ago and which has baffled the racing industry ever since.
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which → have → industry
It is the second time Major Share has thrown a positive swab in 12 months and as a result, their talented gelding can’t run on Oaks Day.
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gelding → throw → Day
To say the large cohort of country-based owners are gutted is an understatement.
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cohort → say → owners
One minute they are booking their tickets to Flemington, the next they are packing away their suits.
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they → book → suits
“I’ve been involved in horses in one form or another for 50 years, and this is the best horse I’ve ever been involved in, by a considerable margin,” retired school teacher Greg May told this masthead.
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May → involve → masthead
“To not be able to see him race because of something, which all the evidence points to occurs naturally and in minute doses, so it has no impact on his physical performance whatsoever, is incredibly frustrating.
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it → see → performance
“We’ve got another six or eight weeks of bills to pay with no possible chance of getting any prizemoney back, and it’s not [trainer] Adam Chambers’ fault.
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it → get → prizemoney
“If anything, I think Adam is more of a victim in this than the owners because his reputation has been impinged.”
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reputation → think → owners
Major Share was due to return this week after 12 months out.
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Share → return → months
It first tested positive at Moonee Valley on Cox Plate day last year.
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It → test → day
No one has ever been able to explain why.
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one → explain → ?
The substance is produced naturally by horses as it is in humans, or it is a performance-enhancing supplement.
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it → produce → humans
In this case, as in all the mystery cases, owners have backed their trainers.
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owners → back → trainers
They all circle back to UK research that points to the substance being exogenous – naturally occurring.
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substance → circle → research
Sadly for them, the research is still yet to be peer-reviewed and published, so cannot be used in evidence.
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research → review → evidence
But here’s what sets this latest case apart: it was a voluntary test.
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it → ’ → ?
Warrnambool-based Chambers organised for the swab to be taken so that Major Share could be cleared to return to racing.
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Share → base → racing
He drove the horse to Hamilton races seven weeks ago to provide the urine sample.
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He → drive → sample
It is hard to believe a trainer would set himself up to fail.
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trainer → believe → himself
A bitter pill to swallow
When it comes to formestane, which is used in some countries to treat breast cancer, Racing Victoria continues to hide behind the rules.
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Victoria → swallow → rules
RV says a horse must be banned for 12 months if it throws up a positive at a race meeting, trial or jumpouts.
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it → say → meeting
The organisation says it is bound by the Australian rules of racing, and cannot make state-based exceptions.
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it → say → exceptions
It is a bitter pill for connections to swallow.
“I can tell you that there are owners of Major Share who won’t be investing again in horses because of the way we’ve been treated,” May said.
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May → swallow → way
So far, 13 Victorian stables have had horses disqualified since February 2023.
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horses → have → February
All have protested their innocence.
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All → protest → innocence
“It is something that we have no control over, no trainer has any control over, and Racing Victoria has dropped the ball in terms of amending the rules to say, ‘well, we accept that trainers aren’t doing it.
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trainers → have → it
It occurs naturally’,” May said.
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May → occur → ?
“Surely, it’s within their powers to say, ‘we’ll either stop swabbing for it or put any penalties on hold until the scientific evidence from their research is finalised’.”
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evidence → ’ → research
At least in this latest case, Major Share will not be rubbed out because Chambers requested the sample outside a race, trial or jumpout.
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Chambers → rub → race
Meanwhile, we have to wait.
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we → have → ?
Racing Victoria told this masthead it has commissioned its own research.
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it → tell → research
Racing Analytical Services Laboratory, which is part-owned by Racing Victoria, will conduct a global study of more than 15 target compounds including formestane, 4-hydroxytestosterone, 6a-hydroxyandrostenedione and DHEA.
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which → own → formestane
The study will take 12 months.
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study → take → months
By then, Major Share might be cleared to run on Oaks Day.
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Share → clear → Day
More than 88,000 people flocked to Flemington and largely avoided the forecast rain.
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people → flock → rain
Those who spent the day in the precinct’s nursery carpark were left feeling unloved.
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who → spend → carpark
They said drivers had to wait more than an hour to enter that section of the course to set up their catering for the day; those on foot had to wait more than an hour to pass through the limited number of turnstiles; and there were not near enough toilet facilities.
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those → say → turnstiles
Interestingly, these issues might have ramifications at the coming Victoria Racing Club elections.
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issues → have → elections
…and 15 more, not listed.
The Aporia
