Waller fined $30,000 over positive swab
While the source of the banned drug methylamphetamine in a horse from the Chris Waller stable remains a mystery, Sydney’s premier trainer has had to cop a $30,000 penalty.
Betcha Thinking returned a positive result to the drug, which has the street name ice, after running second in a race at Canterbury on October 5.
Previous cases in NSW and Victoria have been considered the result of human to horse contamination with a case involving a John McNair-trained horse determined to most likely have been a deliberate act by someone outside the stable.
After Betcha Thinking’s A sample showed the positive, stewards tested 17 people at the Waller stable on November 4 plus another 13 a few days laster.
In the coming weeks the trainer organised a further 67 urine and hair sample tests on his staff which numbers around 100.
Of the tests taken by stewards, six returned positive results to drugs or alcohol but were negative for methylamphetamine.
While stewards did not apportion blame to Waller, they were critical of the security measures in Sydney’s largest stable and concerned that random testing of staff had resulted in positive results to banned substances.
One person returned a positive to methylamphetamine in a hair sample in tests organised by the trainer but stewards agreed it was unlikely he had contact with Betcha Thinking.
A glitch in the CCTV recordings meant some data could not be stored so not all movement in the stables was captured.
While Waller pleaded guilty to presenting Betcha Thinking to race with the substance in his system and expected a fine, he admitted the $30,000 was a little more than anticipated.
“I did expect a bit less, but I do understand the importance of what Mr Van Gestel said and the message they’ve got to put across to the community and with respect of the rules,” Waller said.
Van Gestel said he expected Sydney’s largest stable to be proactive rather than reactive when it came to practices such as the washing of hands before starting work which is now compulsory.
“We need to send a message to ensure the appropriate penalty and to the community at large,” Van Gestel said.
Waller told Friday’s inquiry that while he would continue to do his best to ensure his staff and horses had no contact with such a drug, the problem of illicit drugs in society raised the possibility of contamination from an outside source given the number of people with access to horses on raceday.
The three stable employees known to have handled Betcha Thinking at Canterbury – strapper Devinder Singh, racing manager Charlie Duckworth and foreman Andre Rabbett – all returned negative samples from the stewards’ tests.
The horse’s jockey Hugh Bowman also provided a sample to Victorian stewards on the day he rode stable star Winx to her second Cox Plate win, October 25.
That sample was negative as were those given by four barrier attendants and a Racing NSW swabbing official.
Waller told the inquiry he was committed to providing a safe workplace and supported Racing NSW testing and would continue to conduct his own random tests.
Betcha Thinking has been stripped of his second placing in the race at Canterbury.