Oaklawn Jockey Club in Hot Springs is one of the few major
horseracing venues in the country that has yet to sign a new equine
health, safety and anti-doping pledge recently issued by one of the
largest horseracing associations in the U.S.

Unveiled on Oct. 15 by the National Thoroughbred Racing Association
of Lexington, Ky., the NTRA Safety and Integrity Alliance Pledge was
developed following the collapse of the filly Eight Belles at the
Kentucky Derby on May 3. As Eight Belles took a cooling-off lap after
finishing second to Big Brown, she stumbled and fell, breaking both
front legs. Her injuries were so severe that she had to be euthanized
on the track. Big Brown was also recently injured, forced into
retirement after tearing off a fleshy part of his foot called the
“bulb.”  Eight Belles was a favorite at Oaklawn, where she won three
stakes races in 2008, including a record 13-1/2 length victory in
February’s Martha Washington Stakes.

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The NTRA pledge includes items concerning both equine health and
track safety, among them: the development of uniform veterinary and
equine medication rules at all tracks who sign the pledge; mandatory
injury reporting, both on track and non-racing; an outright ban on
steroids; additional pre- and post-race security; mandatory pre-race
testing for blood-doping; installation of a break-away safety rail
along the inside edge of the track, and adoption of a placement plan
for retired thoroughbreds. The NTRA has announced that former Wisconsin
Gov. Tommy Thompson will provide oversight of the program.

In lieu of comment, David Longinotti, assistant general manager for
racing at Oaklawn, issued a prepared statement to the Arkansas Times
that said: “Oaklawn and the Arkansas Racing Commission have long been
at the forefront of safety and equity as evidenced by the leadership
positions we have taken throughout our history on permissive
medication, track surface safety and expansion of super-test to
non-stakes races. We applaud the NTRA emphasis on safety. However,
several weeks ago, we requested additional information on structure,
governance, perpetuation, responsibility, and authority on this
initiative. We are waiting for clarity on those issues.”

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 “We inquired on some questions about oversight and cost,” said
Terry Wallace, Oaklawn track announcer and director of media relations,
“and we’re just waiting for some response on that. They really haven’t
discussed a lot of those items that are all kind of critical before you
make a decision.”

Keith Chamblin, senior vice-president of the NTRA, said the deaths
of high-profile horses like Eight Belles and Barbaro — who fractured a
hind leg in the 2006 Preakness Stakes and was euthanized eight months
later after treatment failed  — are singular events that aren’t really
indicative of any kind of universal problems in horseracing. He added,
however, that the media attention generated by the passing of Barbaro
and Eight Belles did help push the industry toward making reforms. At
this point, Chamblin said, Oaklawn nearly stands alone among racetracks
in their reluctance to sign the NTRA Safety and Integrity Pledge.

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“Virtually every major race track in North America with the
exception of Oaklawn and Tampa Bay Downs and a sprink-ling of others
have joined the Alliance at this point,” he said. In response to the
statement issued by Oaklawn, Chamblin said: “All of those questions, we
believe, are answered in the Alliance document, but we look forward to
responding to their questions and we hope they’ll join the Alliance in
the future.”

Bill McDowell is the current president of the Arkansas Thoroughbred
Breeders and Horseman’s Association. His McDowell Farms is one of the
largest and most successful horse breeding operations in the state,
with an 80-horse stable just outside the small Dallas County town of
Sparkman. McDowell said that while he’s not familiar with all the
particulars of the NTRA Safety and Integrity Alliance Pledge, he is
supportive of it, as he said are most of the horse breeders he knows.
McDowell said that though there is a place for steroid use in horse
training, some trainers resort to medical intervention too often.
Overuse of steroids can lead to horses that are so muscular and fast
that they can easily fracture bones and collapse joints. 

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“There’s no doubt about it,” he said. “I think steroids have a
certain use, but too many people abuse them. Certain horses need a
boost if you want them to do right, but there’s no way to level that
off so it’s fair.”

Though McDowell said that the cost of implementing some of the items
in the NTRA Alliance Pledge — like the installation of a breakaway
inner safety rail  — likely has something to do with Oaklawn’s
reluctance to sign on, he expects the track to join the Alliance in the
near future.

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“I would think they eventually would,” he said. “The quality of the
trainers that come to Oaklawn, they’re going to want a similar program.
Those horses will come to Oaklawn and then they’ll go on to other
tracks [that have signed the pledge], and they want to be able to race
those other tracks.”

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