Will Doping Controversy Send U.S. Horse Racing to its Grave?

There’s been great controversy in American horse racing over the past decade. This subject has consumed an extraordinary amount of my time, largely because the controversies keep rolling in, one after another. Doping. Breakdowns. Cheating. Horses sent to slaughter.

At this stage in the game, the countless scandals involving the likes of notorious trainers Bob Baffert, Jose Navarro, Jason Servis, Dr. Seth Fishman, and others, as well as the death of countless racehorses, including Medina Spirit, whose Kentucky Derby title was recently removed, has sparked outrage from those who wager on races and those who don’t follow the sport but know there’s something amiss in the enterprise.

The Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act (Act), signed into law in December of 2020, was a serious-minded attempt to deal with rampant doping in the industry and to rehabilitate the image of the sport in the eyes of the public. It was an uphill battle to enact the legislation, and if we hadn’t seen The Jockey Club and key industry players step up and work to expose the corruption in their own sport, U.S. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., would probably not have intervened and joined together with Sens. Diane Feinstein, D-Calif., Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., and Reps. Paul Tonko, D-N.Y., and Andy Barr, R-Ky., to enact the legislation.

No matter the Member, the party, or the chamber, there was only one constant in nearly a thousand meetings on Capitol Hill: everyone agreed that the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) was the only independent-mind, expert authority to oversee doping rules. It was widely referred to as the gold standard, with its engagement in the U.S. Olympic Trials, Pan-American Games, and other high-profile sports.

The new law allowed for a delay in implementation until July of 2022 so the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority (HISA), created by the Act, could be organized. HISA would work to establish national rules, regulations, and standards and to secure a five-year contract with USADA to oversee the drug testing in the sport – a key provision in the new law.

But the new HISA board has not followed up in a way that is consistent with Congress’s intent, and discussions between the HISA and USADA fell apart in December. HISA has announced it wants a separate regulatory scheme, even though the degree of difficulty in forming such an entity is enormously high. We all knew what we were getting with USADA – a proven, incorruptible force for good in overseeing sports with doping problems.

By pivoting to an untested party to conduct drug testing in American horse racing, the HISA board will not be able to assure the public that it has tapped a science-based, independent body that will faithfully keep drugs out of horses on race day. Concerns about the sufficiency of an oversight authority will stir more discussion about whether horse racing should continue at all.

USADA’s proven track record of busting and punishing leading athletes like Lance Armstrong tells us that the non-profit entity acts with honesty and with science in the forefront of its operations. Its rules and enforcement tools will apply to everyone, regardless of their influence or political connections. It has a history of working to protect whistleblowers within industry, as it did after whistleblowers within industry called out Lance Armstrong for its pattern of violations.

Having been a whistleblower and informant in the equine world myself, who exposed unacceptable and grossly inhumane practices, I believe that the confidentiality and professionalism of USADA will be invaluable in locking in reforms. It’s my great hope that USADA will be able to run the bad actors and the cheaters out of the sport.

At the end of the day, time and time again, Congress has made it very clear its intent was for USADA to run the anti-doping program. If the HISA board fails to secure an agreement with USADA to do the testing, then they’re going to keep the doping controversy alive and likely send American horse racing to its grave.

Marty Irby is the executive director at Animal Wellness Action in Washington, D.C., who was named one of The Hill's Top Lobbyists for 2019, 2020, and 2021 and was honored by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth, II for his work to protect animals. Follow him on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook @MartyIrby