WASHINGTON (AP) \u2014 A bipartisan pair of lawmakers is seeking a national ban on performance-enhancing drugs in horse racing, calling for a federal role in a sport that lacks uniform standards.<\/p>\n
Under the legislation by Sen. Tom Udall, D-N.M., and Rep. Ed Whitfield, R-Ky., any person with three violations of the prohibition would be permanently banned from horse racing. A horse that tests positive for performance-enhancing drugs three times would receive a ban of at least two years.<\/p>\n
The bill comes three years after some in the industry urged the federal government to get involved, following the death of Eight Belles at the 2008 Kentucky Derby. A drug test proved that the horse was clear of steroids, but the incident helped shine a light on safety problems and the lack of a single governing body. Rick Dutrow, trainer of the Derby winner Big Brown, acknowledged he regularly injected the horse with the then-legal steroid stanozolol.<\/p>\n
Prominent horse owner Jess Jackson, who died last week, pleaded at that hearing: “We need a league and a commissioner. We need action, please. Congress, help.”<\/p>\n