FEI Tribunal issues a Decision in a doping case

The FEI Tribunal has issued a Decision confirming the terms of the Settlement Agreement reached by the parties in an equine doping case involving a Banned Substance.

In this case, the horse Kenlock Cadillac (FEI ID: 106JG79/AUS), ridden by Rebekah Italiano (FEI ID: 10065197/AUS), tested positive for the Banned Substance Warfarin following a doping control at the CCI4*-S-Ballarat VIC (AUS), 6-7 May 2023.

The FEI notified the athlete of the positive results for the Banned Substance on 4 September 2023 and, in accordance with the Equine Anti-Doping Rules, provisionally suspended the athlete from the date of the notification. The FEI also provisionally suspended the Horse for two months from that date.

The FEI Tribunal was satisfied that the athlete had established, on a balance of probabilities, that the source of the Prohibited Substance arose from a contamination of the Horse feed by rats and consequentlythe athlete bears No Significant Fault or Negligence for the rule violation. The athlete was sanctioned with a two-month Ineligibility Period, starting from the date of the Final Decision (the Provisional Suspension already served by the athlete was credited against the imposed Ineligibility Period). The results of both, the athlete and horse, obtained at the Event were disqualified. Furthermore, the athlete was also fined with 3’000 CHF and asked to bear the costs of 1000 CHF for the B sample analysis.

The full Decision is available here.

FEI Tribunal issues Consent Award in equine anti-doping case

The FEI Tribunal has issued a Consent Award in an equine anti-doping case involving a Banned Substance.

In this case, the horse Ashva Psyche (FEI ID 107YL76/URU), tested positive for the Banned Substance Stanozolol following samples taken at the CEI2*120 Costa Azul, Canelones (URU) 04-05 November 2023.

The trainer, Leandro Zubiaurre (FEI ID 10018848/URU), admitted the rule violation and accepted the consequences. In its final decision, the FEI Tribunal disqualified the horse from the event and imposed an 18-month ineligibility period on the trainer; the provisional suspension he already served shall be credited against the imposed ineligibility period. He was also fined CHF 5,000.

The full Decision is available here.

FEI Tribunal issues Final Decision for failure to submit sample collection

The FEI Tribunal has issued a Final Decision under the FEI Equine Anti-Doping Rules Article 2.3 for Evading, Refusing or Failing to Submit the horse to Sample Collection.

In this case, the athlete Ayedh Al Mughamer (FEI ID 10174065/KSA), failed to submit the horse Talaqah (FEI ID 108BA98/KSA), to the doping control station for a sample collection at the CEI1* 100 Riyadh (KSA), 10-11 February 2023.

The horse was selected for a mandatory in-competition doping control test on 11 February following a positive hyposensitivity examination. The athlete refused the testing and left the event with the horse.

In its final decision the FEI Tribunal imposed a two-year ineligibility period on the athlete from the date of the decision, the provisional suspension served by the athlete will be credited against the period of ineligibility. The athlete was also fined CHF 7,500 and asked to pay costs of CHF 2,000. Lastly, the results of the horse and athlete combination from the event will be disqualified.

The full Decision is available here.

Separately, the FEI has notified an alleged Equine Anti-Doping Rule Violation under the Equine Anti-Doping and Controlled Medication Regulations (EADCMRs). In this case, the athlete has been provisionally suspended until the decision of the FEI Tribunal and the horse has been provisionally suspended for two months.

FEI welcomes new consensus statement on Concussion in Sport

FEI Tribunal issues Consent Awards in Equine Anti-doping Case

FEI Tribunal issues Final Decision in a human doping case

The FEI Tribunal has issued its Final Decision in a human doping case.

This case involves an adverse analytical finding for the prohibited substances listed in Class S1.1 Anabolic Androgenic Steroids, of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) Prohibited List 2022.

A sample taken from the Polish Dressage athlete Katarzyna Milczarek (FEI ID 10003275) on 7 August 2022, during the FEI World Championships held in Herning (DEN), returned positive for Testosterone and metabolites. The athlete was notified of the violation of the FEI’s Anti-Doping Rules for Human Athletes (ADRHA) and provisionally suspended on 27 September 2022.

In its Final Decision, the FEI Tribunal decided to suspend the athlete for a period of 16-months, commencing from the date of the Operative Decision, for the violation of article 2.1 of the ADRHA – presence of a prohibited substance in the athlete’s sample. The Provisional Suspension already served, was credited against the imposed ineligibility period and accordingly the suspension was lifted on 26 January 2024. Additionally, all results obtained by the athlete at the FEI World Championships as well as all results obtained by the athlete as of the sample collection date until the imposition of provisional suspension were disqualified.

The parties can appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) within 21 days of receipt of the decision.

The FEI Tribunal’s Final Decision is available here.

FEI Working Group proposes key changes to equestrian helmet testing standards

An international expert panel gathered by the FEI Medical Committee has put forward a set of key proposals to strengthen the current testing standards for equestrian helmets as a means to enhance the safety of athletes in equestrian sport.

Tasked with reviewing current equestrian helmet testing standards and related scientific literature, the FEI Helmet Working Group was established in April 2023 and is made up of a panel of international experts including engineers, standards experts, medical doctors, helmet manufacturers, athletes and representatives from horse racing.

“While the FEI continues to work on reducing horse and rider falls, measures are needed in parallel to reduce the risk of significant injury when falls do occur. The FEI Helmet Working Group focused on how helmets could be even more effective at reducing the risk of serious head injuries,” FEI Medical Committee Chair Dr. Mark Hart explained.

“There are currently different testing standards around the world for equestrian helmets, with different criteria. Moreover, some of the protocols currently used for testing helmets may not reflect the research and technological advancements that have been made over the past several years.

“Helmet requirements are very sport specific. And, as the International Federation for equestrian sport, we believe that it is our duty to take the lead on assisting manufacturers with creating helmets that specifically cater to the demands of our sport and better protect our athletes’ heads.

“The Working Group has diligently reviewed the existing testing standards as well as the relevant scientific literature, and we are confident that their conclusions will provide a clearer and more robust framework for manufacturers producing helmets in the equestrian industry.”

Following an initial in-person meeting and frequent online discussions, the FEI Helmet Working Group arrived at the following key conclusions:

Scientific testing criteria needs to be improved through new computer modelling and simulations which better reflect real life accidents. This will allow for a change in helmet standards that offer athletes better protection from head injuries.
Additional testing measures and updated brain energy transmission thresholds must be incorporated into the current testing protocols to better account for the varied forces that occur in equestrian falls. The FEI Helmet Working Group recommends that these new testing protocols are introduced as a requirement by the FEI around 2027 in order to allow manufacturers the time to make the necessary adjustments to their production lines.
A new and improved injury reporting system should be established in order to track head injuries, and measure and evaluate the effectiveness of changes to the testing procedures.

The FEI Helmet Working Group’s technical recommendations, which are published on the FEI’s website, will now be shared with the helmet manufacturing and testing industries for feedback. The FEI intends to work collaboratively with manufacturers and helmet standard bodies to achieve these goals, which should be viewed as a new, quickly achievable step forward in allowing helmets to further reduce the transmitted energy to the brain when a fall occurs. Meanwhile, the FEI Helmet Working Group will continue their efforts to improve helmet effectiveness as new research and technology become available.

"The progress made by the Working Group represents a significant leap forward not only for athletes in our sport, but also for the entire equestrian industry”, FEI President Ingmar De Vos said.

“Our vision is that the FEI Helmet Safety Working Group’s conclusions marks the start of a journey that will see the international sport governing body contributing to the elaboration of increasingly safer helmet testing standards meeting both the athletes’ needs and the interests of the manufacturers.”