The Emerald Island bleeds red these days, about the incredible horse doping scandal of the 2008 Olympics. To the uninitiated, this is less 'scandal', and more 'oops', however there seems to be a history here.
The Independent (a paper worth reading) carries these lines:
THE political fallout from the Olympic doping scandal began last night as the opposition hit out at the "incredible stupidity" of using banned substances on horses.
Sports Minister Martin Cullen was expected to fly from Beijing to Hong Kong if rider Denis Lynch and his horse Lantinus had won a medal in the final of the Olympic show jumping competition.
But he was staying silent last night as the controversy over the horse's positive test for the banned substance capsaicin continued to grow.
Fine Gael sports spokeswoman Olivia Mitchell said it was an understatement to say it was disappointing because "we knew we were going to be in the spotlight".
"If it wasn't cheating, it was incredible stupidity," she said.
Although Ms Mitchell said there was a need to wait for the full details to emerge, she warned that any wrong-doing must be met with "swift condemnation and appropriate sanctions".
We in the United States reacted less vocally to the ill-advised invasion of Iraq than the Irish reacted to capsiacin on a horse. Here is the history:
Back in 2004, there was a broad welcome across the political establishment for the gold medal won by show jumper Cian O'Connor -- and massive embarrassment when he had to hand it back after his horse Waterford Crystal tested positive for banned substances.
Ms Mitchell said the public would be asking how on earth this was allowed to happen again after Ireland's experiences at the last Olympics in Athens.
Every country, every town, every person needs something positive, some item that causes pride. For the Caribbean nations it is track achievement right now. For Ireland, horse sports reign. And this hurts.
"It is well known that capsaicin is a banned substance. Considering all the expertise available, and Ireland's loss of a medal at the last Olympics due to drug offences, it begs the question: how could this happen again?" she said.
Ms Mitchell said the scandal would cause dismay among the public.
"It dashes high hopes of another medal in the worst possible way," she said.
Last month, the Oireachtas Committee on Arts, Sports and Tourism devoted several hours to exploring the issues surrounding Ireland's participation at the Olympic Games.
Several members, including Green Party leader Mary White, Fine Gael TD Michael Ring and Fianna FailMichael Kennedy, expressed the hope that it would be a "clean games".
But the announcement of the positive drugs test for Lantinus will increase the pressure on the sport's governing body, Horse Sport Ireland, to come up with a response.
The Irish Times report here. Poor Lantinus. It wasn't his fault. We are getting a little emotional here. Time to shut it down for tonight.
It was falsely reported today (8/22) in the NYT by George Vecsey that capsaicin is a "mild stimulant." It's not. It's a straight painkiller (check the neurochemistry) and is available over the counter at local pharmacies in the States. I didn't find it on the 2008 WADA Prohibited Substances list either (I've been using it for years against illiotibial band syndrome). With horses, I read that in addition to the simple painkilling effect, it makes them hypersensitive to possible injury, i.e., more cautious on jumps. That's why it's banned in equestrian events.
Posted by: romath | 08/22/2008 at 17:29